


Choice

by PInsomn



Series: Rags to Riches [1]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Feel-good, Fluff, POV Second Person, Reader-Insert, Romance, Some POV Third Person, Some angst, Some violence later in the chapters, smut in last chapter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-10
Updated: 2018-09-21
Packaged: 2019-07-10 16:45:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 34,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15953423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PInsomn/pseuds/PInsomn
Summary: Aspiring to become all you've ever dreamed of, we follow Reider (you) on your bumpy ride to becoming an active field agent for Overwatch.  You're bribed into participating in beauty competition that's become a tradition to Overwatch and is run by a handful of Overwatch Agents.  Jesse McCree, the agent you're in charge of under your current occupation of being a Handler, offers you a deal you can't pass up.  You're forced out of your comfort zone and you'll have choices to make.Especially since you've caught the eye of Gabriel Reyes, Commander of Blackwatch, your superior and he intends to use the competition as an opportunity to get closer to you.  Though some choices are easier to make than others.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [marukun](https://archiveofourown.org/users/marukun/gifts).



> Choice is the first part of a, so far planned out, three part series that is Rags to Riches. A lot of people think money when they read riches, I wanted to explore the depth of what riches can be. So, I did that in this first part between Gabriel Reyes and Reider, which is you the reader. Riches are more than wealth, to me riches can be a surplus of happiness and good feelings. Riches can be obtaining your goals and taking steps towards your dreams. 
> 
> When I thought of Choice I was inspired to bring up my own thoughts of beauty standards and how uncomfortable some people make themselves to meet the demands of others. I say screw that, I don’t dress to impress, I dress to be comfortable. That being said Choice is in no way a passive attempt to demean or belittle anyone’s beauty standards, beauty regime or their self worth - Choice is intended to be a friendly, feel good, slice-of-life story meant to provoke thought, intrigue and warmth.
> 
> *Also please note that "you" have some distinct features in Choice such as short hair and glasses.*

“No way, no how.  Not happening Agent, I’m too busy to play.”  You said firmly, rolling back from your desk to give Overwatch Agent Hana Song, better known as D.va, a pointed stare from beneath your black rimmed glasses.

“It won’t interfere with work, it’ll just -”

“Eat into my spare time, which is the problem.  I don’t  _ have _ spare time.”  You pushed back your short, unruly hair.  You gave Hana a firm shake of your head and went back to filling out your last report of the day.  You really disliked that the field agent you were in charge of had a big tendency to ignore protocol.  It meant more paperwork for you, their Handler. However, you wouldn’t want to pass him off to anyone else.  Though you wouldn’t admit it, especially not to  _ him _ , you were fond of Jesse McCree’s act first ask for forgiveness after way of doing things.

You had more or less dismissed Hana in an abrupt way, so you began to wonder why she bothered to stick around.  Then you looked to your left through your peripherals to where Jesse was lounging on the edge of your desk, unlit cigar in mouth with his hat tipped down low.  Jesse’s way of saying “I’m here and I’m listening, but let’s act like I’m not.”. You’d be mad about all the conversations he interrupted with that, but you couldn’t be mad at the charming southern brat.  You just couldn’t bring yourself to do it.

Your fingers tapped across the glowing keyboard on your desk, giving a soft rhythmic noise that filled your cubicle as you pushed the two field agent’s presences from your mind.  Hah. Like that would work. You stabbed your index finger against the period key and swung around in your seat, already irritated about having your clear refusal ignored. 

“Agent Song,” You started forcing your tone to remain diplomatic as you folded your arms over your chest.  Jesse peeked out from under the tip of his hat already knowing the storm brewing behind your strained voice.  He knew you too well. He’d been on the receiving end of that tone more than he’d have liked.

He took that moment to intervene.  “Darlin’, let’s bargain huh?”

You narrowed your eyes.  Unamused and unmoveable. There was no way, no fucking way, he could offer you anything to change your mind and participate in the stupid competition that Hana had the misfortune to draw your name for.  Couldn’t she just redraw? Move on? You had quite literally avoided her for an entire week at this point. The only times she’d managed to cage you were when you were at your desk. Oh that sounded really familiar.  Huh. Pretty much like now during her most recent rejection. Get a clue. The answer was going to remain no. Nothi-

“Ya’know, ya’ve been talkin’ about the upcomin’ exam.  How busy ya are, too busy to catch a drink with little ol’ me.”  Jesse drawled and you could sense something shifting in the air. Something that made Jesse think he had an Ace up his sleeve.  Then he smirked, the left side of his mouth raising up to dimple his cheek. Oh no. “Ya’ve been doing everythin’ ya can think of, ya mentioned once before.”

“Jesse.”  You dragged out the syllables of his name, growing impatient but also wary.  Jesse wouldn’t involve himself in things like this normally. What was the deal?  

“Shoot Darlin’ let me at least build up yer anticipation. Fun sucker.”

You had to suppress the urge to flip him the bird.  Punk. Instead you settled for a quelling glare, which was promptly ignored by the much taller, much broader and much more used to your antics field agent currently filling up half of your cubicle with his shit eating grin alone.  Maybe you should think about giving Jesse McCree to another handler. You sighed, loudly before Jesse finally continued.

“Ya haven’t done everythin’ possible -”

“If you think partaking in a beauty competition will help, you can go -”  Jesse firmly pressed his hand over your mouth, continuing before your interrupted sentence could be finished.

“I could train ya, Reider.  I know how important the field exam is to ya.”  Your eyes widened behind your black glasses and your eyebrows rose halfway up your forehead in utter disbelief.  Excitement burst in your chest and you had to force yourself to stay in your chair. You hadn’t even thought to ask Jesse to train with you for the exam.  You didn’t even know if you could. 

Sensing your excitement Jesse’s grin grew wider and he rolled the unlit cigar between his lips before removing his palm from over your mouth.  “But.”

“But whatever Jesse, I’ll do it.”

“Ya haven’t even heard…”

“I don’t need to.  You’ll train me?”

“Once a day every day until your exam.  On the condition that you cooperate with Hana and…”  You were already nodding your head. You didn’t give a ratsass that you’d just sealed away more of your freetime to a beauty competition.  Training with Jesse would make your passing the exam this time around a breeze, you were already confident in your improvement over the last few months from your last attempt.  But if you were to train with Jesse, your possibility of passing the exam would definitely increase. 

Instead of just putting in 100% of your effort, you’d steal some of Jesse’s to stack onto your own to make it 150% - no, 200%.  

“Reider, are ya listenin’?”  You shook your head. Hell no you weren’t.  Jesse gave a long, loud sigh and placed his palms on either of your shoulders, pinning your eyes with a meaningful stare from his big brown pair.  “Listening?”

You nodded.

“Alright.  The conditions of this agreement.  I’ll only train ya if ya cooperate with Hana, meanin’ let her do whatever gussyin’ up she wants to do to ya and  _ and _ Reider, this is a big and.”

“I get it Jesse, stop trying to get more emphasis.  You already  _ have _ my attention.”

Jesse rolled that damn cigar again and leaned back, planting his hands on his hips.  You rolled your eyes. “Annnnd, ya hafta try to win. Just competing isn’t gonna cut it at this point.  Ya hafta try and really try Reider, I know ya can catch up the points ya’ve made Hana lose with yer game of hide and seek.”

Okay, that wasn’t all your responsibility.  You’ve been rejecting her all week. But you weren’t going to open your mouth and say that at this point.  In fact, you kept your lips firmly pressed together, as unhappy as you were about doing the competition it was worth it to get training for the field agent exam with an actual field agent who had many more years of experience over you.  Who else was better suited for such a task? Well aside from your Superiors, Strike Commander Morrison and Commander Reyes.

But they didn’t count.  The most you saw of them were glances in the canteen during the morning meals, sometimes you saw them in the halls while you were running errands and at meetings where you had very little interaction with either of the Commanders.  They were an unapproachable duo that you couldn’t bring yourself to enter their bubble. You were just too out of place when compared.

You shook the thoughts from your head and looked back to Jesse, then shifted your gaze over to where Hana was still standing.  You scratched at your hairline and pushed your fingers through your short hair making it an even bigger mess on top of your head that you couldn’t be bothered to fix.  Ever. You sighed again and pulled the glasses from your face while pinching the bridge of your nose. You kept them off, dangling them from one end in your hand as you looked back up to the now blurred agents.  “I’ll win the competition without complaint and then ace my exam. But! I’m still working for another,” You lifted your wrist to glance at the watch there. The glowing blue digits were a messy blur. Shit, right.

“Ten more minutes Reider.”  Jesse informed you after noticing your squinting.

“Ten more minutes,” You repeated and shoved your glasses back in place. “So leave.”

“I’ll wait for you outside Reider and don’t try to run away.  I’ll send the cowboy after you if you do!” Hana sing songed as she skipped out of your cubicle and out of the room.  The sound of Jesse’s spurs jingled, alerting you as you turned in your chair that he was following Hana’s lead and leaving you to try to finish up the rest of your report.

Just what had you gotten yourself into?

*

After your shift ended you met Hana as agreed outside of your work area within the Overwatch base and were immediately dragged off site into the large, bustling city just thirty miles away.  People and omnic alike bustled around the busy fashion central, toting large plastic bags with store brands stained onto them. You watched as people peered through shop windows at the various fashion items each store had to offer.  Advertisements of sales blinked slowly all around as Hana lead your purposely through the clusters of pedestrians.

You felt out of place here even if no one was paying you any mind.  Still you followed Hana’s skipping form. She clearly knew where she was taking you, yet she hadn’t said a word to reveal the secret destination.  It wasn’t until she was pulling open the door to a beauty boutique that you realized the makeover process started immediately.

You were signed in and barely five minutes passed before you were planting yourself in a chair in front of a omnic who was talking with Hana about what she wanted done.  Hana had said something about your hair, nails and pores. Whatever you were in for was beyond your imagination until the omnic spun you around, washed your hair with five different bottles of ...whatever.  It smelled good at least. A towel was wrapped around your head as the omnic towel dried your short hair. 

A cape was draped over you and the omnic beautician went about cutting your hair.  Then you were tipped back and the cold steel of the omnic’s hands smeared a cream over your face before laying a warm towel over your face.  An indiscernible amount of time passed before the towel was removed and the omnic’s hands returned to massaging your face. You were sat back up and the omnic started on your hands.  Coating each fingernail with a soft orange color before shaping them.

Over the course of the next hour you were waxed, your eyebrows were shaped and you had another cream rubbed into your face and before you knew it you were done.  It was done. Your face tingled as you met back up with Hana who was sitting at the front of the boutique with a magazine flipped open on her holopad with several bookmarked tabs open.  She looked up as you stood in front of her, shifting awkwardly in place.

She proceeded to do a double take.  “Reider?” She asked hesitantly and you scraped your nails over the back of your neck.

“It’s not that different, you’re being dramatic.”

Hana waved a hand at you dismissively before beaming a wide smile in your direction.  In her eyes you had changed a lot already. Now she just needed to get you into a pair of contacts and your uniform needed to go.  You watched her pay and then the two of you were off. As you stepped out into the busy shopping area you noticed that evening was drawing near.  

Hana picked up the pace and led you to the next place where you were forced into at least a dozen different outfits of varying styles and colors.  A lot of them - no,  _ all _ of them were not something you’d ever see yourself wearing.  Though luckily Hana let you find a few outfits for work use. By the end of it you had several black pencil skirts, a pair of shiny black heels that you didn’t know how you were going to last a day in them and three blouses.  One was a soft blue, another a pale white, and the last was a mellow orange with half-sleeves that buttoned up and emphasized your rocking bod (Hana’s words, not yours). Your strangest wardrobe addition however was the black dress that came to just above your knees and had a low neck cut.  Why you needed it Hana wouldn’t tell you, but you couldn’t complain. You said you wouldn’t.

You wanted to.  You really, really wanted to. Especially since she’d snuck off at some point when you were changing to purchase contacts that she insisted you wear immediately.  You wore them and the little black dress currently, as the pair of you walked with arms full of shopping bags through the center of the shopping outlet. You were trying to find something to be happy about but it was hard.  You were uncomfortable in the new underwear you’d purchased from a lingerie boutique just moments ago. You liked simple underwear designs, even if they were uninspiring (Hana’s words again) and lacked appeal. They were comfortable, unlike the lacy, frilly mess you had going on under the little black dress you’d somehow crammed yourself into.

Oh.  It suddenly struck you as you met eyes with a random stranger.  You were being watched. Well, no, not quite. It wasn’t malicious.  People were just taking note. Your cheeks warmed and you took a step closer to Hana trying to shield at least some part of yourself behind her.

“Reider…?”

“Yes Agent Song?”  You responded when Hana looked over her shoulder at you.

“Are you hiding right now?  I didn’t take you for someone who hid.”  She teased and you bristled. Rising to the challenge by putting your chin up in defiance and taking the lead.  

“We are going back to the base right?”  You asked to make sure. She nodded and you didn’t miss the smile that ate up her face.  While the pair of you waited for the taxi to show up you turned to Hana, the questions had been stacking up since the start of your little adventure into the world of beauty and now you had to know.

“So…”  You started feeling a little uncertain.  You shook yourself free of the timid feelings, you were not timid and never had been.  Just because you were uncomfortable in foreign clothing and feeling foreign under everyone’s watchful though appreciative stares, didn’t mean you were going to start behaving timidly.  You embraced your fuck-you mentality and steeled your resolve while squaring your shoulders. A makeover was just an obstacle. Obstacles were meant to get over, so you got over it. You defiantly ignored the small voice in your head that whispered  _ sorta _ .

“What’s on the schedule?”  You asked Hana as you turned to her.

She met you with a smile and looped her arm through yours.  “We’re going back to base and we’re going to knock ‘em dead.  During this competition there’s four big key points that can make or break your points.  Each day a competitor receives a maximum of 20 pts, voted on by the other competitors’ coaches, except I can’t vote for you because you’re my competitor.  There’s four others than you competing. Agents Mei, Sombra, Lena, and Briggite are all coaches this time around with the competition.”

“That being said, tonight is one of those nights to turn things around for our team.  We’re going to a barbeque when we get back to base.” Hana declared as she slid into the taxi that had just arrived.  She was already giving directions as you slid in after her.

Great.

*

You finally found the bright side you decided as you tipped the neck of the cold beer bottle in your hand to your pink stained lips.  You found it in the form of the relaxing barbeque atmosphere, the soft hum of conversation and the music that filtered out of the large speakers mounted around the open garden.  You found the bright side in the burger you had just polished off and the chips you’d scarfed down. You found it in the same way you ignored the wandering curious gazes of your colleagues and the active field agents.

“Ah.”  You sighed as you braced the chilled bottle against your folded arm.  You were standing off in the corner, watching faces that you’d seen around the base smile widely as pairs broke off to dance together to the pop song that had just started.  For the moment you were relaxed and at peace, but that didn’t last long when Hana’s irritated scowl with puffed out cheeks came into view. Marching directly at you.

Who put the bee in her bonnet?  You wondered as she stopped in front of you.

“You’re not holding up your end of the bargain Reider.”  Hana complained as she huffed out a breath that you wondered if she might have been holding.  You scowled right back at her, giving her a large what-did-I-do gesture.

“Huh?”  Was all you managed to say.

“You’re supposed to be getting friendly with everyone, you know, schmoozing?”  Your brows knitted together. Huh? Since fucking when? Hana’s expression morphed into one of disbelief as she stared at you.  You wondered if she might start pulling her hair. Should you laugh at your own joke? Probably not. You thought dismissively. Smiling right now would definitely not make Hana’s mood any better.  Oh crap, you were smiling. Yikes.

“Okay here’s the deal Reider.  To earn the points, you need to schmooze.  You need to get actual attention. That’s what this barbeque’s all about.  You can’t, can’t,  _ can’t _ hug the wall.  The only reason you’re getting some attention is because of the makeover.”  Ouch. What the hell? You glared at her and bit your cheek to keep from saying something snarky back.  You took a breath and when you redirected your gaze you noticed McCree across the way, leaning against the built in bar surrounded by your Superiors (his friends, you knew) and you noticed that he was looking at you with an eyebrow lifted in silent question.

Oh great.  Suddenly the bright side wasn’t all that bright anymore.  Augh. “Okay, I understand now Agent Song. I…” Oho. You smiled wickedly.  “ _ I _ know just what to do.”

And you did.  Know just what to do that is.  You emptied the last of the beer from your bottle and tossed it in the trash as you made your way to where Lucio had set up his Dj booth for the evening.  You didn’t have to talk loudly to make your next song request, already knowing Lucio would just read your lips. He paid you a compliment on your outfit, looking mildly shocked to discover it was you rocking the little black dress that was so uncharacteristic it made his head spin.  

Still, you made it work and he kept some of his thoughts to himself, that being one of them as he watched you walk away.  Had you always had that hypnotic hip sway?

Song request accomplished you made your way purposefully towards where Jesse was leisurely reclined, without a care in the world as he laughed and joked around with your superiors and Agent Genji. You didn’t even feel deterred by the two Commander’s presences as you approached the cowboy you were in charge of.  If you were going to make a fool out of yourself to gain the attention Hana wanted you to, you were bringing Jesse down with you. Oh yeah. You thought wickedly as you managed to grab an opening and slide your way to the brunet’s side.

“Jesse.”  You greeted as you placed a hand on his bicep, subtly digging the tips of your fingers into his arm while you smiled too-sweetly and softened your tone.  You felt the eyes of your superiors on you and it made your shoulders tense while in their intimidating presence, but you forced yourself to meet their eyes.

“Commander Morrison, Commander Reyes.”  You dipped your head in greeting to Genji.  Then you tipped your head in Jesse’s direction, dug your nails into Jesse’s arm just a little bit more and said, “I need to borrow him.”

You’d like to point out that your voice didn’t even so much as tremble or shake.  There’s a bright side. The sweet tune of the country song you’d requested started playing over the speaker system and you felt Jesse’s muscles tense and looked over just in time for him to start forming whatever excuse he could pull out of his as- hat, to escape.  Your smile became more genuine and your eyes softened as you watched his inner struggle.

“Reider, darlin’ I don’t dance.”  He started and you shook your head.

“Sure you don’t.  Remember that time, I think it was last month actually, you were in Venezuela and I had to...”  Jesse’s hand shot out to once again clamp over your mouth joined with a nervous laugh as you watched him look over your shoulder to where you knew Gabriel and Jack were standing, probably watching and definitely listening to the two of you.  

“Yes, I remember, ya promised we’d never bring it up.”  Jesse complained and you laughed behind his hand. With a sigh he leaned back though he kept his hand over your mouth as he repeated.  “I don’t dance darlin’ sorry.”

You proceeded to bite his hand, earning a curse form the taller man.  “You do now. If I’m going down, you’re going down with me. So, let’s get moving before Hana thinks I’ve come over here to use Commander Morrison and Commander Reyes as human meatshields from her wrath.”  You shuddered. “I can feel her glaring at me.”

“That would be because she is.”  Genji told you and you peered over your shoulder to confirm that yes, Hana was glaring at your back and that yes, she had thought that what you had just said was exactly what you were doing.  It was written all over her stormy expression. But still Jesse didn’t move and your own irritation with the stubborn agent grew.

Okay, fine.  If you can’t persuade the mountain to move, you moved it yourself.  It took a little bit of finesse and a whole lot of speed but you managed to catch Jesse off guard and locked his arm behind his back before planting your foot on his butt and less than gently giving him a kick towards the dance floor.  The country song was finally getting to a good part and if you wanted to grab the attention, now was your chance.

“I’ll bring him right back.”  You said to your superiors and Genji, who were staring at you.  Gabriel was impressed, though he masked it well and Jack was openly gawking at the show you’d just provided them.  The three of them watched as you jerked Jesse to the edge of the dancefloor and began dancing with him. It was a comical sight to see and Gabe was the first to break their silence by snorting.

“Has she always been like that with McCree?”  Jack asked Gabe.

He nodded, having been watching you from day one.  He liked your personality and your work ethic was something even he couldn’t sneeze at.  You’d been Jesse’s handler for almost three years now, a position you’d automatically been placed in after you joined Overwatch.  Honestly he hadn’t thought you would last a week managing Jesse, but you had surprised him by wrestling the cowboy into behaving and becoming somewhat manageable.  Ever since you’d been locked into the position, though Gabe was aware you had been trying to become a field agent yourself and that you were still trying.

Though this time, this exam, would be your last chance to prove your growth.  Secretly he hoped you would make it this time, but only time and results would tell.  He was rooting for you, nonetheless.

“Yes, she has a way with Jesse I’ve noticed.”  Genji answered for Gabe. Assuming his silence was ignorance of Reider’s existence.  Wrong.

“She’s interesting and funny.”  Jack commented as they watched you lead Jesse into a line dance.

You were enjoying yourself you discovered as your hands met Jesse’s and the two of you danced around one another, swinging this way and that.  Kicking one foot out and then the other and not too long after the two of you developing a pattern, you noticed others were starting to mimic the rhythm Jesse had set.  Before too long everyone was doing their own versions of a line dance and you laughed breathlessly as Jesse spun you around and brought you back with a snap. 

Hell, even Jesse was enjoying himself now.  Smiling down at you, following the rhythm and adding quirky gestures that made you snort and roll your eyes.  You may or may not have returned a few of your own. Before you knew it several songs had come and gone.

“About this training...”  You started when Jesse pulled you up against his chest and slowed the pace.  He gave a short nod of acknowledgement, a silent prompt for you to continue and you did.  “When are you free for that exactly?”

“I have a couple hours I’ll open up before and after yer shift.  But let’s keep business for later darlin’, right now we’re dancin’ and enjoyin’ the festivities.  Ya’know unwindin’, that thing I’ve never seen ya do.”

You rolled your eyes.  “I relax more than you think Jesse.”

“Not lately ya haven’t, so stop thinkin’ about reports and errands.  Erase the studyin’ from yer mind and relax. Take the moment to just not think about the exam.”  He drawled through the words before throwing his arms around your shoulders, lifting your feet off the ground and leaning you from side to side while your complaints went muffled against his chest.

Ooh, he was so getting it.  You slapped your hands against his back, making him laugh at your struggles until he decided to put you back down before you resorted to twisting and pinching his skin.  You’d done it before. Once put back on your feet you looked up to meet his gaze and the cheesy grin you were met with pulled a laugh from your chest.

“Okay.”  You relented as you decided to follow his advice.  It startled you to find he knew you’d been pushing yourself over the last few weeks, spending all of your free time hitting the books to study for the exam that was coming in a short three weeks.  Though it probably shouldn’t surprise you as much as it did. Jesse was pretty much the closest person you could consider calling your friend at the base, he was the only person you interacted with on a daily basis, either through the commlink when he was called out for a mission and you were in the position to guide him or here at the base when he would drop by during the mornings to offer a fresh mug of coffee and make small talk with you.

He was a good guy and while he was always charming everyone around him, he didn’t have to force that on you.  Conversation was always nice with him, if not too long at times when you needed to be working instead of running your mouth.  But that was part of Jesse’s charm. He could distract you from something that even you hadn’t noticed had been bothering you.  He knew you too well and vice versa. 

You were almost sad that if, no  _ when _ you reminded yourself quickly, you became a field agent and moved up the ranks you wouldn’t be his handler anymore.  It was a bittersweet feeling, but one you would have to get over like all the other obstacles popping up. 

“Oi, biggie, give the rest o’ us a chance ta dance with tha bird.”  A voice you’d easily recognize belonging to Agent Junkrat, Jamison Fawkes, interrupted the quiet that had befallen the two of you.  You looked over to find the junker jittering in place, a wide and dorky smile on his carefree expression greeted you as he stepped up to pull you from Jesse.  

An upbeat song started then and you were whisked away by the, for once clean, junker.  You weren’t surprised at all to find Jamison’s dancing to be just like everything about the blond.  Eccentric, erratic and all over the place. Though it was easy to keep up with once you got the hang of the avoiding Jamie’s gangly, flailing limbs.  The dance felt more like reflex training than anything else, but it made you smile as you kept up the erratic pace, hands in his with your arms jerking every which way.

He cackled maniacally and loudly, drawing many curious glances your way.  And just like that the dance was over, Jamison was gone before you knew it, off to find a new victim to thrash around the dancefloor with.  You were at a loss as he abandoned you in the middle of the dancing pairs, out of breath and left reeling from whatever… that had just been.  

You weren’t left long however as someone tapped your shoulder, gaining your attention as you turned to meet them.  A gasp of air caught in your throat as you met Commander Morrison’s blue eyes, there was a gentle smile on his face and his hand was offered towards you, a silent invitation that you accepted hesitantly.

His hand was warm as you fitted your hand in his, a slow song came on and Jack pulled you towards him, fitting your bodies a respective distance apart as he placed his hands on your hips.  You in turn pressed your palms against his chest and let him guide you into a slow dance.

“You looked a little lost, Reider.”  He said and you laughed under your breath.

A nod.  “I was a little, Sir.  Thank you.”

He shook his head.  “No thanks necessary.”

The two of you fell into a calm quiet, one where you weren’t exceptionally comfortable with, feeling the need to talk to ease some of the tension from your shoulders from dancing with your superior.  You didn’t even know Commander Morrison danced and while it was just a slow dance that required little skill to master you could sense a subtle elegance in his movements. He was confident in all aspects you were reminded.  However it was still strange to be in such a man’s presence, so close you could feel his body heat. 

You never would’ve guessed you’d be in this situation when you woke up earlier that morning.  Mingling with your superior who you’d only ever had brief conversations with. You admired the Strike Commander of Overwatch.  The silent power and control over himself was something you could never dream of mastering in quite the same way, though you would try like Hell to do so.

The song was over before you knew it and Jack released you from his hold.  “Thank you.” He offered as he lifted your hand and pressed a short kiss to the back of your knuckles.  Oh damn. You had to fight off the blush rising to your cheeks as you stumbled over your words.

“O-of course, yes.  Thank you Sir.” Uh, knock knock.  Hello brain? Yeah if you could just… work!  That’d be great. You refused to wince or even recognize how you sounded, instead forcing a smile to your face.  Fortunately for you the two of you didn’t have to the chance to address your awkward stumbling, since yet another person tapped on your shoulder.  You saw a flash of surprise on Jack’s expression as you turned your body to greet whomever…

Oh holy shit.  You thought as your eyes locked with the warmest, deepest pools of chocolate brown that you’d ever seen.  If Morrison’s intimidating presence made your shoulders tense, Blackwatch Commander Gabriel Reyes’ presence had all of your muscles locking together and made your nerves come to life with electric awareness.  You respected Commander Morrison, but you looked up to Reyes. He was your role model and your direct Superior, since you were part of Blackwatch’s employee list of Handlers.

Admittedly you interacted more with Reyes than Morrison but only because you turned your reports over to him and saw him around the halls and in the canteen.  Your eyes would always fly to him whenever he entered a room you were in. You still hadn’t figured out if your feelings were solely based off your admiration of the man, or if there was something more to it.  You decided that now, while Commander Reyes stood at your side, was not the time to ponder those conflicting emotions.

“Commander Reyes.”  You greeted, hating how your voice made it seem like you were preparing for war orders or a new assignment.  Forcing yourself to relax you rolled your shoulders subtly. Apparently not subtle enough as you watched his brown eyes flicker to your shoulders.

“Reider.”  There was no smile that presented itself on his handsome face, but you thought you saw something similar flash in his eyes, but it was there and gone before you had the chance to analyze it.  “Blondie doesn’t know how to tango, do you?”

You were surprised by the question.  Was that supposed to be an icebreaker?  Wait, more importantly, did Gabriel Reyes just use an icebreaker?  On you? Uh. You swallowed and took a deep, fortifying breath. What did he just ask again?  Did you know how to tango? Kind of. You learned the basics years ago. You didn’t think you could tango very well back then nor did you now.  How could you tell him that? That was too much to just blurt out.

Yes or no Reider.  Simple as that. Another breath, in and out.  There we go. Answer honestly, tell him you suck.  “Kind of.” 

“Oh?”  Gabe’s noise of question was a deep rumble that almost seemed to energize the atmosphere.  A slow, almost sinister smirk grew on his mouth. Damn him, why did he have to make noises sound good.  He snagged hold of your wrist and tugged you in close. “Let’s see if you can keep up then.”

Oh shit.  Was this happening?!  The song changed at that moment and you listened to the familiar melody of a tango song you once practiced to and it confirmed your suspicions.  Oh yes, this was happening and if you remembered correctly this song was mid-range in pace. A slow starter that worked its way up. Holy smokes.

Immediately you noticed a difference in the way each of the Commander’s held themselves.  Where Morrison was polite and questioning in his invitation to dance, Reyes was smooth but demanding, though the hold he had on your wrist was gentle enough for you to break away from if you decided you didn’t want to dance with him.  In its own way, you liked Reyes’ invitation more. You got the sense of your own bias however.

Then as you started dancing with the Blackwatch Commander you started noticing more differences between the two men.  Morrison kept you at a distance, Reyes however did not. Your bodies were flush together and while you could use the excuse that the style comparison of slow dancing and the tango were starkly different to one another, you had a feeling it was something more.  The firm, warm palm pressing to the small of your back - when it could be against the center of your back - was a tell.

“We’ll start small, nothing too fancy.”  Gabe said as he fitted you against his body and coaxed you to lean more against him.  “No lifts over the head or emphasized poses. Don’t be so stiff Reider.”

You nodded dumbly, then snapped yourself out of it.  You were dancing, you were getting attention. This was for the competition that would benefit your exam scores via the training with Jesse.  When you focused on that and not on the strong admiration and respect you held for the man you were pressed snugly against you found yourself able to relax more.  You took a deep breath and let it out slowly, a smile followed behind it as you rested your free hand on his left shoulder and fitted you leg between his. Take the initiative.  You reminded yourself. 

A tango is a balance of pulling and pushing.  So, when pushed, you pull until you can push back.  Your smile grew as you found the rhythm Reyes had been leading you into.  Soon the music was all you could focus on that and moving your body in time with Reyes’.   You were so into it you didn’t notice the crowd of dancers leaving the floor open to the two of you, or that all eyes had been turned in the two of yours’ direction.

“Ready for a spin?  It’ll be fast.” Reyes whispered against your ear and you nodded enthusiastically.  As soon as you loosened your grip from his shoulder and tightened the grip on his hand he sent you twirling out.  You lost a shoe, but recovered before it could be a hazard by kicking free of the other. Then he snapped you back, tucking your body against his as he slotted his leg between yours and guided you backwards.  

All you could see was him.  Dark eyes fixated on yours, mocha skin didn’t so much as break even the slightest of sweat, and the soft but angular features of his face were pulled into a reserved smile that only made yours get warmer and grow wider.

All you could hear was the music and the breaths the two of you shared in sync.  The song carried the two of you along with its gradually inclining pace, you were blind and deaf to everything else going on outside of the small bubble that had formed around the two of you.  Your muscles clenched and unclenched against his, hands intertwining to glide against each others as you were spun, twisted and snapped upright after being tipped backwards.

It was a rush, it was exhilarating and you couldn’t remember the last time you had had so much fun.  Or felt so carefree. You don’t even remember ever having tangoed this well in the past. Always stumbling over your partner or your own two feet.  But that didn’t happen with Reyes, master of control that you knew him to be. He led, but also followed. He guided but didn’t force, he coaxed.

How could someone so intimidating, who carried himself along with a fierce aura of power, be so damn gentle?

“Alright, finale time Reider, hold my shoulder.”  You did as instructed and suddenly you were off your feet.  Reyes locked a hand around your thigh that you instinctively tucked upwards, while your left leg stayed straight, balancing on your tips of your toes on top of Reyes’ shoe.  Together you spun, the force of it crushing your chests together and making you smile wider and wider as a bubble of laughter and delight escaped from your throat. Then you came to an abrupt stop.  

Breathing laboriously you looked up into Reyes’ dark eyes, finding a sight you’d never before seen in those mirthful pools.  A sight you’d never thought you’d ever be on the receiving side of. Gabriel Reyes was smiling, completely, back at you. So wide and unmistakable that his cheeks dimpled.  The hand on your back was splayed wide and so hot you felt scalded even through the fabric of the dress you wore. Reyes’ palm on your thigh was another matter, one that caused heat to rise to the highest parts of your cheeks.

“Hey Reyes!  This wasn’t a dance competition!”  You heard Jesse yell, breaking the trance you’d found yourself in.  As you righted yourself a round of cheers and clapping started up around the dancefloor.  The burning on your cheeks increased as you parted from Reyes.

“If it was, we just knocked out all competitors.”  Reyes declared sending a wink your way. You couldn’t keep yourself from smiling.

By the end of the barbeque, when you were all danced out and returning to your quarters your cheeks ached.


	2. Chapter 2

Throughout the next week you follow Hana’s strict dress code, wearing the skirts and black slacks with the new blouses you bought last weekend.  She congratulates you for taking the lead in a single night from the barbeque. You think the congratulations is more for herself however, since you could really care less about the competition.  It’s a means to an end. That’s all. You don’t care about the attention that you’re receiving. You  _ do _ care about the training you have with Jesse for an hour before your shift and two hours after it. 

You feel like you’re learning a lot from the experienced agent.  Your reaction time is getting better and you even feel stronger because of the changes in diet Jesse has suggested.  You miss your extra cups of coffee throughout the day, but they’re worth giving up if it means you increase your chances of passing the exam.

It’s your last chance to pass the exam and you wish it weren’t, so that there was less pressure to put on yourself, but you can’t linger on your regrets of the past times you’ve failed.  The first time you lacked the stamina to get through the second half of the exam, which is always a randomly generated simulation of a field event. You always fail the second half of the exam, but that doesn’t mean you’ve stopped hitting the books for the written portion that’s the first half of the exam.  You can’t risk pulling a blank mid-exam. If that’s how you missed out on your final opportunity to become what you’ve always ever dreamed of you’d kick yourself for the rest of your life.

So, you after every evening training session with Jesse you bring your notes to the canteen and study while you eat.  Except today, it’s only thursday but because of the drastic changes in your routine you feel bogged down. Exhausted really.  The beauty regime Hana gave you after the barbeque, that Jesse reminded you to strictly follow on top of everything else was a real chore.  You woke up, studied, you trained for an hour, you worked until five in the evening only to start training again with Jesse for another two hours.  You were late to dinner every night and getting to bed later and later because of Hana’s beauty routine.

Scrub your face, exfoliate, repaint your nails because you have have a habit of chipping the paint off while you’re deep in thought and to top it all off you have to figure out what to wear for the next day and send a picture to Hana for her approval.  You’re behind on your sleep and you can feel it with the bags that show under your eyes.

You’re sitting in the canteen making your way through your pancake while you’re buried in a section of research material on your holopad that you forgot to complete yesterday when Jesse plops down in the seat across from you.  You spare a glance up from the section you’ve been trying to read and digest for the better half of the last five minutes.

“Mornin’.”  He says and you really want to reach across the table and deck him for sounding so cheery.  He looks more put together than you today as well, you notice even though you know he definitely rolled out of bed, found something clean and comfortable (a grey t-shirt and black fatigues) threw it on and maybe ran his fingers through his hair.  You were practically frothing at the mouth with envy. You’d foregone the contacts today because you’d left them in overnight by accident and irritated your eyes. Your blouse was making you itch from the ruffle design concealing the buttons and your slacks were static central.

You were beginning to get irritated just thinking about the uncomfortable clothing you’d been bribed to put yourself in. 

“Morning Jesse.”  You tried to sound happy and upbeat, but from the expression on Jesse’s face you knew you’d failed.  You went back to reading about a recent omnic accident in Yugoslavia, checking another agent’s response work and the details of the report were making your head spin. 

“What’s up with ya?  Sound like ya need to go back to bed.”

You flipped him off and shoved a bite of syrupy pancake in your mouth. Though even you could agreed with Jesse on needing more sleep, you still didn’t want him to point it out.  Was it that noticeable? You smothered another yawn at the thought and resigned yourself to the answer being yes.

“Reider?”  He prompted and you looked up to meet Jesse’s eyes.  You remember he asked you a question that you had yet to answer and quickly finished the bite of pancake you’d shoveled into your mouth.

“Uh-huh, yea?”  You set your holopad aside and combed your fingers through your hair.  Between your exhaustion and your irritation over the makeover thing you were distracted and you knew it. 

“How about we skip training this mornin’ and ya go catch a nap somewhere?”

Yeah, a nap sounded good.  It sounded exceptional. No.  You shook your head.

“I can’t nap.  I’m just stres…”  You looked over to your left at the sound of a metal tray being set down.  Annnd your mood plummets more when you’re greeted by Hana’s disapproving inspection of your appearance.  You take a deep breath and smile at her. “Morning Agent Song.”

“Good morning Reider.  Are you feeling okay today?”

“Sure why?”  You pick back up your holopad and start glancing over the same paragraph you’ve been stuck on since you started your breakfast.  Maybe if you looked busy she’d eat and leave.

“Well, you’re not wearing your contacts and you look… a bit under the weather, is all.”  And the holopad goes back down. You twist in your seat to meet her gaze and the itch of the frills on your arms feel like the last straw being pulled halfway.

“What?”  Irritation flares within your chest and your question comes out louder than intended.  Drawing attention from the others at the nearby tables who put eating on pause to observe the conversation.  You take in a deep breath and collect what little patience you can muster, knowing that there are several outside factors that are causing said irritation and that a responsible person won’t take it out on a convenient outlet that suddenly appears.  No matter how tempting it is.

Hana looks you over once more and with a shrug says. “I just don’t think you’re holding up your end of the bargain is all.”

For a moment you’re struck silent.  What? What in the what? You did everything, you followed along with the beauty regime. You’ve dressed nicely, uncomfortably even.  You even think your makeup today looks the best you’ve ever managed alone. So in what fucking dimension was Hana in that you weren’t holding up your end?  You abso-fucking-lutely were.

“Now ho-”  Jesse’s interruption goes ignored as Hana continues on.

“I know you don’t want to win, but it’s part of the bargain to at least try.  You’re obviously not doing that.” Hana pouted. Actually pouted. You couldn’t see past the red of the last straw being pulled.  Hell, you waved that little fucker goodbye. When in the last week hadn’t she tried?

Habitually you take off your glasses and rub the bridge of your nose in irritation.  You lay them on the table and when you turn to meet Hana’s eyes, she can see the irritated redness around your irises and the darkened bags under your eyes.  She has a realization in that moment, that she’s said too much and assumed too much. However you can’t see anything register on your expression past your blurry vision.

You’re so damn tired of this beauty competition.  So what the hell were you even doing? If Hana was convinced you aren’t trying, if you’re half assing your way through it, well you might as well prove her right.  There’s no fucking sense in staying uncomfortable if the one you’re actually doing it for doesn’t appreciate your effort.

“Right okay.”  Your irritation is clear for Hana and Jesse and whoever’s at the nearby tables to hear in your voice.  Which is strained, tired and clipped. You sigh again and fight against raising your voice, because it’s not that big of a deal.  You have a message to send that you can get across just fine without raising your voice.

Your hands fly to the buttons of your blouse and you get about two buttons undone before you rip the rest of them off.  They go scattering across the table and the floor and you shuck off the uncomfortable blouse, thankful you went ahead and wore a black tank-top underneath.  “I understand you don’t know me Agent Song and that’s why you’re questioning my code of ethics so bluntly. But that doesn’t mean I’m not offended. I’m tired from the change in my routine which is putting more stress on me and therefore causing me to make more mistakes in my professional and personal work.”

You untuck the blouse from your slacks and place it in a balled up heap on the table.  “I used to have a bad habit of falling asleep with contacts in, which is why I didn’t wear them until your regime demanded them, which by the way, is why I’m missing out on two hours of sleep that my body is used to.”

You turned back to return to your meal only to find your appetite gone.  You still have a little under half left. You stand to depart from the table, having said your piece and stifle yet another yawn.

“Reider?”  Jesse asks, trying to mediate and alleviate some of the tension that had filled the atmosphere around the table.  You offer him a tired half-smile that doesn’t meet your eyes.

“I’m skipping practice today Jesse, I need to catch up on work and sleep.” You say as you pick up your holopad, then as an attempt of humor you quote a piece of advice he told you once a long time ago.  “Knowing your limits is something expected from a field agent. I found mine. Enjoy your breakfast.

You leave after gathering the blouse, your glasses and holopad and you dump your tray on your way out.  You don’t see Commander Reyes at the next table over, but he certainly sees you.

*

Friday rolls around and you’re in a much better mood. You’ve caught up on sleep and the work you fell behind in.  Morning practice with Jesse goes on unhindered and your workload isn’t as high as it usually is. Your evening practice with Jesse is cancelled however because Hana wants to take you shopping again.   

This time it’s for an evening gown and jewelry pieces for tomorrow’s event that she won’t tell you anything about.  Just that it’s very important that the pair of you find the best dress possible. You try on at least a dozen dresses before you find one that’s comfortable, functional and meets Hana’s standards.

A light cream colored evening gown with a gold embroidered chiffon overlay.  It’s truly beautiful and you feel beautiful in it. You leave the accessories to Hana since she knows better about what to pick out that will match.  Thankfully she only picks out a necklace and matching pair of thin gold bracelets.

Neither of you bring up yesterday morning’s conversation but that works just fine for you.  It wasn’t a huge deal, it mattered otherwise you wouldn’t have said anything, but you could tell from the lack of the usual passive-aggressive comments from Hana that you got your point across.  Perhaps she was even noticing your efforts now. You didn’t bother to ask to find out.

“So, you’re really not going to tell me what tomorrow’s event is all about?  I’m really curious. The barbeque was a lot of fun.” You said as the pair of you walked down the street towards the waiting taxi cab with arms full of new shopping bags.  Honestly, you felt like these shopping excursions gave you more than a workout than your training with Jesse did. Inwardly you smiled to yourself at the thought and brushed it off quickly.

“Nope, it’s a surprise.  All of the suspense will build you anticipation, but it’s going to be a blast.  It’s formal, which is why we’re shopping tonight and everyone’s going to be dressed to the nines.  Maybe you’ll even see Gabriel…” The way she dragged out his name made you blush. You knew she was teasing you, but now that she’s brought him up, you can’t get the thought of Commander Reyes in a suit out of your mind.

 

It turns out, your imagination doesn’t do Commander Reyes any justice.  He’s standing against the opposite wall between Captain Amari, who looks absolutely stunning in her silky black evening gown and Commander Morrison who looks equally nice when he puts himself in a tux.  But you can’t compare either of them to how your direct superior’s looks tonight. Dressed in a black on black tux, a glass of what looks like scotch in hand while the other is tucked in his pants pocket as he talks with Captain Amari and Commander Morrison.  It’s like a picture from a magazine.

You’re forced to look away when Jesse and Hana appear before you.

“Holy smokes.”  Jesse comments before blowing out a low whistle.  You snort as you make a full turn upon his gesture of wiggling his finger in a circle.

“Okay okay, that’s enough.”  You say upon your third spin and finally capture Hana’s attention.  “Spill, what’s the event tonight. Or is the event being everyone dressing up like we’re famous. Wait, I mean like red carpet famous, not international law enforcement famous.”

Beside you Jesse laughed loudly as he threw his arm over your shoulder.  Then he straightened up abruptly. “Wait. Reider,” He looked over to Hana and you followed suit.  What’s going on? He frowns at Hana and your temporary handler looks unabashedly guilty over whatever you’ve been left out of.  “Ya didn’t tell her?”

“Tell me what?”  You venture hesitantly, but are ignored.

“Well not yet.  I was about to.”  Hana replied, clapping her hands over yours and leaning over to whisper in your ear.  “Just to remind you - don’t get mad, or upset. It’s nothing terrible, otherwise it wouldn’t be allowed and of course, the proceeds will go to a charity of your choice, so it’s for a good cause.”

“Cut the shit Hana.  What’s going on?” You demanded.

“It’s a date auction Reider.”  Jesse cuts in, his tone dark and the scowl is deeply set in his expression.  You can understand why he’s angry, because at that moment you’re in the same boat.  When Jesse tugs you away from Hana you’re almost relieved, however not so much when he gets into his alpha male mood that reminds you of a posturing peacock.  Shoulders squared, jaw clenched, and lips set in a thin line that has his skin pulled so tight the corners of his mouth are white. 

You peek around from behind his shoulder to look at Hana who looks only slightly guilty now with her hands held up defensively and her smile missing.  “Ya didn’t think to tell her the competitors are going to stand on a stage to be auctioned and that whoever bids the highest gets to take her on an all-day date?”

You pat Jesse’s shoulder, urging him to be quiet while making shushing noises as you smile at your colleagues and the field agents passing by.  Sure you were angry at Hana, but you didn’t want to broadcast to everyone around you that you were in a fucked up situation. This was embarrassing enough.

“It’s for charity! And it’s only Overwatch, our friends and colleagues.  That’s all.” Hana defends and okay, you can give her that. Though it was still an uncomfortable situation to be in.  “I never would have let her go in blind if… like the general public was invited.”

“Ya shoulda told Reider beforehand no matter what.  All of the other competitor’s handlers did, wanna know why?”  He didn’t wait for Hana to respond, he didn’t even give her the opportunity to do so as he took a step closer to Hana, invading her personal space while he leveled her with a glower.  “Because that’s the responsible thing to do! Thank  _ God _ yer not an occupational handler, ya’d get yer agent killed!”

“Whoa, okay.  Down big guy.”  You say, forcefully squeezing your way between Jesse and Hana. Who looks ready to cry and wow, you really don’t want to put up with that tonight.  Yikes. “Thank you for being concerned and angry for me Jesse, but you took it too far.”

“How the hell are ya not spittin’ mad?”  Oh, he was redirecting. You grabbed his shoulders and shook him, offering him a half smile.

“I’m absolutely livid.”  You declared. “I mean, who wouldn’t be?  But that’s not the point. Hana… while her actions aren’t the best and I definitely don’t appreciate not being told about something like a date auction, she wanted me to have anticipation.  Suspense factors and all that. Which wow, she got us. Me? Uh.. I have a point.” 

You clapped your hands together after taking a breath to refocus your attention and gather your thoughts, organizing them quickly in order of importance.  “My point is, we have bigger fish to fry rather than chewing out my handler. We can put that on the back burner for now, yea? Because whether I’m ready or not, I’m about to get auctioned off for a date with possibly a colleague I’m not familiar with, or one none of us are.  What are we going to do about that?”

“I’ll bid on you.”  He eventually responded after some thought and a wave of relief rolled through you.  You breathed a sigh of relief and gave him a warm, sincere smile with a nod of agreement.

“Okay.  So that fixes that.  Now, when does the auction star--”

“Welcome one and all, in a short five minutes the auction will begin.  Starting with our lovely Agent Song’s contestant, Reider. From there we will auction off the contestants in order to their score ranking…”  The announcer of the evening, Captain Ana Amari stated through the overhead speakers. As soon as your name was mentioned your heart plummeted into the pit of your stomach and you had to grab hold of Jesse’s arm to steady yourself.

You hadn’t expected it to start so soon.  You hadn’t even had the chance to prepare yourself, but the knowledge that Jesse would be bidding on you was a comforting reassurance.  A date with Jesse would be no sweat. You didn’t have to worry about anything when you were with him. He was a steady constant in your daily life and you got along well with him.

Captain Amari continued with her scripted introductions, listing the contestants and sharing the rules of the night’s event.  Bids were all going to start at $100 and all of the proceeds would go to a charity of the contestants choice. She also explained how tonight’s points for the competition would be scored.  A series of randomly selected individuals would be asked to score each contestant and the votes would be tallied and relayed to the competitors handler before the end of the night.

“Reider.”  Jesse said to gain your attention after noticing your nervousness.

“Hmm?”

“We’ll spend the whole date trainin’, prepare yerself.”  He smiled at you as the nervousness was erased, replaced with the excitement of getting more training for your exam.  You’re deep in thought when he starts to escort you to the stage. You’re imagining it now, close quarter combat for longer than an hour, then stamina training and perhaps a chance to actually train with a simulation where Jesse can give you live tips and instruct you on what you need to work on and what you’ve done right.  

Before you know it you’re standing on the stage, Jesse’s weaving his arm out from around your grip and heading for the steps.  The only reason you’re able to maintain your smile is because of the promise of more training. You have to force back the nervous jitters and ignore the urge to look at everything but the people staring at you on display. 

This was awkward.  Perhaps one of the most awkward positions you’d ever found yourself in.  But you weren’t alone in this. Jesse was there for support and Captain Amari was doing a wonderful job introducing you.

You were jealous of her ability to charm the public with her speech.  “Reider, tell us about yourself.” Oh, yeah she definitely knew how to get people talking.  You kneaded your hands together then hid them behind your back, knowing that Hana would have something to say about that later.  The teenager always had more to say and not a lot of tact to get away with it.

“Hello, I’m Reider.  Better known as Agent Jesse McCree’s handler, or babysitter some prefer.”  You laugh along with the crowd and try not to sound so nervous about it. Your eyes meet Jesse’s and he’s bashfully rubbing his neck while Lucio pats his shoulder, laughing loudly.  “Uh,” You laugh a little more when you see Jesse turn red from something Genji must have said. “I’ve worked for Overwatch for three years now and I’m working hard to become a field agent.”

“Oh wow, it sounds like you’ve put in a lot of time into working towards your goal.  We all wish you the best of luck for the upcoming exam Reider.” Captain Amari turned to the crowd then.  “Alright everyone, the bidding will start now.”

A flurry of bidders started, overwhelming you with the sheer amount of number cards that were listed and dollar amounts being shouted.  But to your relief, Jesse took over quickly, announcing loudly his own bid and drawing all attention away from you. Your heart hammers against your ribcage at the bids amoun and just when you think Captain Amari’s going to start counting down for a final calling bid, you’re stunned into shocked silence by the next bid.

“Five thousand.”  Bidder number 01 states and you follow the card holders raised arm down to identify the bidder.  Your jaw almost drops when you find it’s none other than Commander Reyes holding up the bidder’s card.  You can’t believe it.

“Six thousand.”  Jesse’s quick to raise the bid.

“Seven.”

“Eight.”

You watch Commander Reyes send Jesse a dark look that’s quickly followed with a wolfish grin. Not a man to be outbid, Gabriel raises the stakes.  He wants to win and there’s no amount he’s not willing to pay. 

“Fifteen thousand.”  He says and you swear, your heart has stopped beating completely.  There’s no way you could ask or even expect Jesse to beat that. You meet your agent’s eyes but he’s not staring at you, his expression is contemplative and with a defeated shrug he drops his card.

“Going once,”  Captain Amari begins, though she sounds shocked herself.  “Going twice.”

Was this really happening?

“Sold. For a whopping fifteen thousand.  The bar has been set for tonight ladies and gentlemen!  Gabe…” Ana chuckled to herself before correcting. “Commander Reyes, come on up and escort your date from the stage, please.”

Neither of you had been expecting that apparently.  However Commander Reyes is the first to collect himself.  With confident strides the gathered crowd parts in front of him and he ascends the stage.  For the second time in as many weeks you’re left reeling at all you’ve ever thought about the Blackwatch Commander.

Then it hits you. Gabriel Reyes, Commander of Blackwatch and your superior just won the bid to earn a date with you.  You were going to have a date with  _ the  _ Gabriel Reyes.  The same Gabriel Reyes who you didn’t even know knew you existed before the barbeque.  The big fish in your little pond. 

He sidles up beside you, his arm extended and waiting for you to meet him halfway.  You tuck your hand under his arm and he settles a large palm overtop of your hand as he gives you one of those rare, half smiles that you think could possibly be reserved for only you to see.  You’re not as uneasy about him outbidding Jesse anymore and while you know you’ll be missing out on a full day of extra practice, you think that maybe it won’t be any less enjoyable for you.

The two of you descend from the stage and you can feel curious eyes on you but it matters so little when the immovable, unshakeable force known as Commander Reyes guides you through the sea of Overwatch employees and agents.  You’re not exactly sure where he’s leading you until the two of you come to a stop in the area that’s been designated as a dance floor in front of the live orchestra.

Familiar territory.  You think as he loops his arms around your back and pulls you in close to start a slow dance.  It doesn’t even occur to you to feel out of place in his arms. He’s warm against your bare arms and he smells like a spicy cologne that just so  _ him _ .  It’s a scent that’s quickly becoming familiar and comforting to your senses.  You find yourself leaning more into him and you wind your arms under his, placing your palms flatly against his shoulder blades.

“You look nice.”  He says after a while and the compliment warms your cheeks.  You don’t even try to hide the smile it brings to your face.

“Thank you Commander.”  You whisper and turn your face from his chest to rest your cheek on his shoulder.  It feels right, like you fit just like this. Should you wonder if that’s normal? Did you even care to attempt?

“Gabe.  Call me Gabe, Reider.”  He interrupts your thoughts and you look up to meet his dark pools of brown.  He’s already staring at you and maybe he has been since the two of you started dancing, but you wouldn’t know.  You hadn’t even thought to check. But now that you were gazing at him, you couldn’t bring yourself to look away.  You truly didn’t want to.

“Gabe it is then.”  You finally say. “You look handsome tonight as well.  I didn’t take you for a tie wearer.”

“They’re constricting, but it completes the looks, dontcha think?”

You glance to the deep red tie he’s wearing and bring your hand forward to smooth your fingers over the top of it.  It’s as soft as you thought it would be. Gabe closes his hand over yours, keeping your hand held against his chest in the warm cocoon that was his hand overtop of yours.  His thumb presses into the center of your palm and somehow the small gesture is one that makes your heart beat out of sync. 

“That depends, Gabe, is it a clip on?”

He gives you an overly dramatic look and gasps deeply.  “Have some faith in me.” He leaned down then to whisper in your ear.  “It’s magnetic.”

Your eyes go round as saucers and you pull back to look at the neck tie.  “No way.” You reach up to tug on it and find that Gabe was joking. It’s a proper tie and you can’t help but laugh at your own gullibility as you smooth out his tie and go back to resting your head against his shoulder.

Gabe’s laughter rumbles against your ear and you can’t keep your smile from widening.  His laugh is infectious and something that won’t ever be forgotten. You tuck this cherished memory away and mark it in your mind as the first time you were ever the cause of such a lovely noise.

The hum of voices came to life from the opposite side of the room, cheering and clapping as another competitor was bid on.  You weren’t interested in seeing any of the other matchups, focusing on yours was enough for you. You enjoyed the slow dances you were sharing with Gabe, gliding over the polished tile flooring in Gabe’s arms.  Holding conversation in hushed voices while the music drifted on around the two of you.

After a few hours when the muscles in your legs were beginning to complain Gabe escorted you over to where tables had been set up to encircle the dance floor.  Draped in both white and black cloths and decorated with a glass encased tea light, the ambiance changed as you settled into a chair next to Gabe. He had his arm draped over the back of your chair and the two of you nursed glasses of your own choice of drink.  A scotch over ice for him and for you a glass of sweet red wine.

“Reider.”  Gabe called your name, pulling your attention from observing the couples dancing.

“Hmm?”  

“What was going on earlier this evening before the auction?”  He asked and you gave him a confused look which prompted him to further explain.  “Jesse looked ready to go for Agent Song’s throat. It takes a lot to get him worked up like that.”

Oh.  You’d completely forgotten about that.  You scratched at your hairline but stopped yourself from running your fingers through your hair.  “Well, Agent Song’s my  _ handler _ for the competition, as I’m sure you’re aware.”

He nodded and you set aside your glass of wine.  “She’s a good kid.” You started, tone diplomatic as you spoke.  “But she doesn’t always think.”

“Mm.  But that wouldn’t piss Jesse off like that.”

You smirked.  “Oh, but it did this time.  She didn’t tell me what tonight’s event was.”

Gabe leveled you with a look of utter disbelief and shock and you felt yourself nodding.  “Jesse and I are close, I’d say we’re friends. I watch his back on the daily, so there’s trust there and it’s mutual otherwise I wouldn’t be his handler, right?”

“That’s correct.”  You turned more towards Gabe as you talked.

“Jesse didn’t like Agent Song’s way of er, handling me, I suppose you could say.  I don’t like it either, but I have to remind myself that she’s never been a handler, it’s not her job in Overwatch and she’s young.”  You held up a placating hand when you saw the tightness building in Gabe’s jaw.

“That doesn’t excuse her, I know and believe me I’m not making excuses for her.  It’s just how I view these hiccups. She wanted to surprise me and she did.”

“That’s a terrible surprise Reider.”  He said definitely not placated. Quickly you forged on, you didn’t want to get Agent Song in trouble.  This was a matter that would be better settled between you and her, without anyone elses involvement.

You quickly rushed on.  “She knows now that this was unacceptable, Gabe.  It’s put her and I both in an awkward and strained position, when this competition was formed around the idea people getting to know one another.  She and I are still getting to know one another, I wasn’t always a fantastic handler for Jesse and I can admit that it took a lot of trial and error between us to get to where we’re at now.”

“Can I ask you a question Reider?”  Gabe asked once you finished. You cocked your head to the side and nodded slightly.  “How do you feel about the competition?”

“It’s f-”

“Reider…”  Gabe gave you a pointed look, then in one swift move he tugged your chair right against his own.  “Be blunt, I want your honesty, not a face-value answer.”

“I wouldn’t think to answer any other way.”  You replied and meant it. “ _ Honestly _ , I hate these kinds of things.  It’s a glorified beauty pageant… actually I think a better way to put it is… well I feel like I’m a show dog, you know?”

He nodded in understanding.  “I’m not… this woman. I like comfortable and practical, not glamor and diamonds.  This isn’t me at all. The glitz, the attention. It’s overkill for me personally, but I know it’s helpful for some of the other competitors so I won’t say I’m wholly against it.  It’s been fun, the weekly events at least. I can see it affecting morale in a positive way, everyone’s happier and everyone’s anticipating what they’ll see next, what will happen next.  In a way it’s exciting.”

You took a breath and this time allowed yourself to run your fingers through your hair.  A habit of yours that Gabe found endearing since it made your short hair stick up in an adorable fashion.  “But it’s restricting me. Agent Song is not easy to please and she’s not as understanding as I expected her to be, or as patient as she could be.  It’s messed up my routine and I’m more tired than I ever remember being, which if it affected my work anymore than it has then I’d…” You blew out a breath and reclaimed your glass of wine, finishing it off before placing the now empty glass back onto the table.  “Honestly, it wouldn’t be worth what I’m getting out of the deal.”

This caught Gabe’s attention and he lifted a brow in your direction.  “Deal?”

Your lip twitched with a humorless smile.  “Yeah, uhm. You see, I really wouldn’t be participating if it weren’t for Jesse offering to help me train for the upcoming field agent exam.  It’ll be my fourth time retesting.”

“Your last chance…” He said thoughtfully.

You nodded.  “Exactly. I’m prepared for it though, I just want to be over prepared.  Instead of giving my all, 100%, by factoring in Jesse’s training I’m giving 150%... no 200% of my effort.  I’m doubling my chances of passing, basically. So anyway, if it weren’t for that I wouldn’t even be in this competition.  I’d be sleeping an additional two hours and I wouldn’t have made any mistakes last week during work.”

“You also wouldn’t have been at the barbeque.”  Was it just you or did Gabe sound displeased with his own comment?  Were you reading too much into it? 

“And I wouldn’t be here tonight and you wouldn’t be fifteen grand poorer.” You teased and Gabe smirked.  Oh, that made something in your chest warm. You reached out and clasped his hand in both of yours. Take the risk you told yourself and you were glad you had when he didn’t pull his hand away from yours. “So that’s why Jesse was mad.  This is why I’m even here tonight and Gabe.” 

“Hmm?”

“Jesse was supposed to win the bid.”  You teased and gave him a wide grin. “But I don’t mind that it was you.  It’ll be fun, whatever plans you have in the making. A whole day to learn about Gabriel Reyes.  I wonder, is there more to you than the Boss side I’ve seen over the last three years?”

A wolfish grin spread over his mouth as a warmth entered his eyes you couldn’t identify as he squeezed your fingers into his palm.  “Wait and see, Reider.”


	3. Chapter 3

“So, you’re trying to tell me that you’re not a regular to this hole-in-the-wall diner that we’re currently having breakfast in?”  The look you were giving Gabe was one that spoke volumes, saying that in no way did you accept his denial of frequenting the place he’d taken you to for breakfast.  The start of your day long date.

Gabe pulled the mug of black coffee away from his mouth and rolled his eyes dramatically in your direction.  “I didn’t say it like that.”

“Oh?  You know, I remember a certain someone saying they were taking me to a place no one knows about.”  You smirk and snicker under your breath. “The way I understand that is, we’ve both never been to said place.”

“Alright, alright.  I’m caught.” He told you, making a dramatic show of surrendering with his hands held up on either side of his head, mug still in hand.  “But it’s a damn good place, so eat. We have a busy day.”

You look down at your plate of food and your mouth waters.  It smells amazing and it looks its too. Bacon, fried eggs and toast.  A standard breakfast, not unlike the meal you would get back at base. But there’s something… you can’t quite put your finger on it, that makes the whole meal more enjoyable.  You glance up to the man seated across from you who’s devouring his own meal as you start in on yours. Perhaps  _ he’s _ what’s changing the experience.

Or maybe it’s because for the first time in two weeks you feel like you’re back to normal.  Wearing black fatigues and a grey t-shirt one size too large for you, as well as Gabe’s jacket, which he offered to you during the taxi ride into town when he noticed you were shivering.  

You contemplated claiming it as your own, but decided to push that errant thought completely out of your head.  You might be on a date with your Superior, but that was because he paid for it. It didn’t mean what a part of you thought it did. That didn’t keep that part of you from continuing to hope.

Halfway through your meals, when the two of you were slowing and becoming more awake Gabe started talking.  “Let’s see… after breakfast I thought we could go for a walk through the districts, window shop and all that since we’re in town.  Then I planned on taking you to the lake where we could picnic for lunch.”

“Whoa, window shop?” You hated to complain, but you had to stop him.  The competition had left you shopped out. “C’mon Gabe, we’re both not into-”

He raised a finger in your direction as he continued chewing around the pancake bite he’d just taken.  Then he said, “There are different types of shops other than beauty boutiques Reider. I’m not about to drag you all over to make you look at purses or… God forbid, shoes.”

You snorted loudly which turned into a full laugh. “Gun shops and gear shops?”  You asked after you sobered. He nodded and took the last bite of his breakfast.  You went back to focusing on your meal, eating a little too fast out of anticipation of the shops Gabe had in mind.

The two of you sat back in your respective chairs, nursing the coffee mugs in your hands and taking the moment to let your meal digest in silence.  It was a comfortable silence, something that surprised the two of you because it came so easily. As if this wasn’t the first time you were out together.  You took the moment to look Gabe over. You’d only really ever seen him dress for work with the auction event being an exception. Today though, he was wearing casual attire.  A pair of black fatigues similar to yours and a white long sleeve shirt that he’d tucked into the waistband of his pants and as always, that black beanie was ever present to cover his brown hair.  

His goatee was neatly trimmed you noticed as you looked over the rim of your mug and caught him staring out the window with a pensive look on his expression.  You turned then too to see what was the cause of such an expression and right as you looked over a streak of lightning flew across the suddenly grey, heavy clouded sky.  A downpour started barely a minute after the thunder from the lightning rumbled loudly outside. You turned back to Gabe in time to see him frown.

You knew Gabe to be a man who always came prepared and you saw no reason for him to change that for your date.  So, on some level you understood right away why he was frowning. The plans he’d revealed to you so far were outdoor activities and as much as you loved the rain, being soaked to the bone while trying to enjoy a date just didn’t sound like something you’d like to attempt.

Another crack of thunder changed the severity of the storm and the sheets of rain started pelting the diner’s windows.  The once quiet diner was now filled with noise, the splatter of rain echoed through the small building and the bell over the door chimed several times signaling the half a dozen newcomers who had come in to escape the rain.  They were all in varying states of wet, from just barely touched to flat out soaked. Some even had umbrellas. You knew Gabe didn’t and you sure didn’t have one hiding anywhere on your person.

“At the risk of sounding anal,”  Gabe said with a barely audible groan while still staring out the window as he spoke.  “I didn’t have a plan B. The weather was supposed to stay sunny all day. It..”

“Hey, Gabe it’s okay.  We can still do some of what you have planned, window shopping’s out, what else did you have in mind?”

“Picnic by the lake, there was a quiet place I found that I thought you’d enjoy.”  He snatched the beanie off his head and gave his hair a quick, irritated rub. Okay, so that was out too.  You grimaced and reached across the table to place you hand over his fist that looked as if it was trying to strangle the life out of Gabe’s beanie.  You squeezed his hand. 

“What else?”  You asked hesitantly.

You saw pink form tint the tips of Gabe’s ears and he scratched his throat, but wouldn’t meet your eyes.  “It was just supposed to be a relaxing day outside. I don’t get out of my office and I know you’ve been busy.  We don’t get many opportunities to leave the base, so I planned for us to spend the day talking.” He grumbled under his breath.  “Someone told me cloud watching is relaxing, thought you might be the type to enjoy it.”

You smile at him and coax his fingers out of his fist one at a time before you lay his beanie on the table and interlock your fingers with him.  “I would’ve really liked that Gabe, but just because the weather has turned on us doesn’t mean the date’s over. We have all day, there’s plenty to do at the base.”

He gave you a skeptical look and you watched him trying to figure out what the two of you could do back at the base that would date worthy.  He apparently came up blank and your smile grew wider. You already had some plans in mind.

“Let’s be spontaneous Gabe.”  You declared before dropping his hand, scooting out of the booth and plucking your wallet from the pocket at your knee.  You were already paying the diner’s cashier when you felt Gabe come up behind you. In no way was he slow, you’d simply managed to catch him off guard and beat him to paying.  You weren’t about to have the who can pay argument, you knew you were just as stubborn as Gabe and if you let it happen then half of your date would be arguing over a bill. You shook your head at the thought.  Not on your watch.

Gabe snagged the extra fabric of his sweater that was bunched up at your elbow before you could pay for the tip.  You smiled at the fact he kept a hold of the sleeve even as he handled the waiter the tip he’d earned. There it was again, that demand instead of request habit of Gabe’s that you found perhaps a little too endearing.

On your way out he looped an arm around your shoulder, you leaned into him.  Stepping out into the downpour was awful and within minutes you were both soaked.  The ride back to base however went by quickly and when the pair of you had to get out you raced him to the lobby.

Your wet boots squeaked over the tile floor, leaving a trail of water behind you as the squeaks echoed off the walls throughout the hallway.  Drawing the attention of your colleagues and the field agents alike as you vaulted over the coffee table to maintain your lead. It was a false start you agreed with Gabe later after sliding your way into the lobby ahead of him with barely a centimeters distance between you.  You’re bent over at the waist hauling in deep breaths between bouts of laughter when you notice that the lobby isn’t as vacated as it usually is.

In fact the two of you have interrupted what seems to be a field agent meeting.  You wondered why they were holding the meeting here of all places before you remembered that the conference room was scheduled for construction that day.  Something about Winston finally getting Athena into the room’s wiring. You shifted uncomfortably on your feet, dripping water into a small puddle on the floor as you avoided the eyes of Commander Morrison, Captain Amari and a handful of the field agents that were scheduled to go out for missions over the next week.  

“Told ya it was gonna rain Jefe.”  Jesse commented from where he sat, sprawled out across one of the loveseats with a folder laid open on his chest.

“It’s not just a little bit of rain Jesse.”  You said before Gabe could form a response. “It’s a downpour, so I suggest umbrellas for anyone who plans to go out.”

“An umbrella probably wouldn’t help much, Reider.”  Gabe cut in, shaking himself out and scattering droplets of water on the tiles below.  Then as if they didn’t just get caught off guard, Gabe pressed a hand to the small of your back and ushered you along to the otherside of the room that led to the hallways leading to Overwatch member’s private quarters.  “Before we catch a cold, we should change.”

You nodded.  “Sounds good.  Meet up in the lounge?”

Gabe smiled down at you, throwing the agents and his peers for a loop.  He never smiled so easily, but they’d all begun to notice a change about him whenever you were around.  He smiled more and seemed more approachable, he’d also been having less bouts of grumpiness and a few times they’d caught Gabe’s eyes following after you when you entered the room.

This time Gabe got the head start leaving you halfway in the lobby where all attention was directed towards you.  You laughed awkwardly as you caught Jesse’s curious expression being directed you way. You chose to ignore the silent question he was asking you when he tugged at his shirt and lifted a brow, indicating to the baggy, soaked sweater you had on that was clearly not yours.  “Good luck on the missions everyone.” You said before taking off down the hallway towards your quarters, Gabe was already gone from sight and you knew he’d beat you to the lounge.

When you got to your room you shucked off Gabe’s sweater, then jumped around as you pulled off your boots before stripping entirely and throwing your sodden clothes into the hamper in the corner of your room.  You towel dried and threw on a change of clothes. A pair of dark wash jeans, warm black socks that you pulled over the straight leg cut of your jeans and a white tank top. You pulled on a peach cashmere sweater and snagged your second pair of black boots on your way out before you’d even had the chance to catch your breath.

As expected Gabe was already changed and waiting for you in the lounge as you jogged into the room.  Hana and Lucio were in the middle of a video game match, sitting in front of the large tv with controllers in hand and a wide, unhealthy variety of snacks strewn about on the floor before them.  Across the room you noticed Genji tucked away in the corner, meditating on a yoga mat. A few of the employees you didn’t recognize had just finished up a round of billiards and were abandoning the pool table that you’d had on your mind since you left the diner with Gabe.

“You kept me waiting Reider.”  Gabe said as you approached him, he smirked as he caught sight of the boots you had in your hands.  You hadn’t even dried your hair, though it was short enough that it would dry quickly anyhow.

“You got the head start  _ Commander _ .”  You teased as you placed your boots down next to the table beside the pool table.  Then you went to the opposite wall and looked at the pool cues, checking what was available before selecting one for yourself and Gabe.  “We’re playing billiards.” You declared as you tossed the cue over to him.

He caught it and sent you a questioning look.  “Are you sure? This doesn’t seem really date like.”

Your eyebrows flew up your forehead as you sidled up to Gabe’s side.  Your eyes narrowed on his dark brown pools and a smirk of your own lifted the corner of your mouth.  “Haven’t been on many dates have you?”

No reaction.  Not even a twitch.  “Our occupations don’t give us many opportunities to date Reider.”

Okay, he had a point.  An extremely relatable point. “Got me there Gabe, but it doesn’t matter what we do on a date, so long as we’re both enjoying ourselves together right?”

He nodded, finding the logic in your words.  “Alright, but I’m not going easy on you.”

“I’d be insulted if you did.”  You laughed before setting up for the first game of many.

-

Three wins and three losses later the two of you decided you wanted to do something else.  You’d managed to kill enough time to catch a late lunch together. You ordered chinese delivery and tucked yourselves in the farthest corner the canteen had to offer.  You were halfway through your orange chicken when Gabe suggested your next activity.

“Paintball?”

“Yeah, one on one Reider.  The room’s not booked for this evening,” He hummed as he looked up from the log he had pulled up on his holopad.  “We could play a round, capture the flag sound good?”

“Yes!”  You responded enthusiastically.  Your thoughts turned to how the match against Gabe could be a beneficial experience for you towards your training for the exam and you couldn’t keep yourself from beaming a wide smile at Gabe from across the table.  You couldn’t remember the last time you’d fired at anything aside from a paper target. Adding an objective into the mix spiced things up a lot too.

But above all that, when you thought about being up against Gabe, an expert in weapons, you were overflowing with energy.  He promised a challenge as a more experienced opponent. You could hardly keep yourself in your chair as the two of you finished your meal.

-

Your blood is racing in your ears as you crouch behind a knocked over barrier that’s stained multiple different colors of paint splotches.  Both old and new. You’re completely surrounded with props used to represent trees of a jungle. Sweat drops from your chin and you hastily wipe it away, you hand comes away smeared with a mixture of red paint and sweat but you pay it no mind.  You’re intent on winning this match, with a score of seven points to Gabe’s nine. If he finds you, he’ll win. But if you get to his flag, you win. 

You know what you need to do.  It’s just a matter of finding where Gabe’s hidden himself and countering.  You grab a smoke grenade from the utility belt strapped around your hips and pull the pin before throwing it over the barrier.  With a gentle hiss the smoke begins to expand over the clearing surrounding Gabe’s flag and you check the rounds you have left in your paintball rifle.

Ten rounds left.  You needed to use them sparingly, because Gabe is a professional and reloading while he’s nearby is a mistake you won’t repeat again.  The explosion of wet paint drying on your left calf is enough of a reminder. You don’t need another to match on your right one.

The pressure’s on.  You throw yourself out from behind your cover and start a belly crawl beneath the smoke towards Gabe’s flag.  Victory is within your grasp after a few minutes pass, the hissing of the smoke grenade has stopped and you’re quickly losing your cover.  Just as you pop up into a crouch you’re met with a hand appearing from the wall of smoke from your right. A startled yelp is cut off as Gabe’s hand clamps on your mouth and in the next second he’s dragging a crisp red line of paint across your throat.  

You can feel the heat of him pressed flush against your back before it’s gone along with the hand clamped over your mouth.  The buzzer goes off overhead, confirming another defeat for you. You sit back on your haunches and grumble to yourself as you reload your weapon.

“One more?”  You request without looking up to Gabe.

He laughed as he sat down on the ground and put his back to yours.  His head thumped against yours gently and you heard him reloading his paintball rifle.  You almost wanted to turn around just so you could watch his hands work, however you didn’t, content to have his back against yours.  “One more, but it’s the last Reider. You’re going to be sore tomorrow if I keep kicking your ass.”

You jerked your elbow into his back.  “Ass. I’m holding my own, you’re just better.”

He chuckled but said nothing else.  The two of you caught your breath, rehydrated and got back into positions at your respective flags.  The match started off better than the last two, you were in the lead, having gotten a few lucky shots in when Gabe took the initiative to steal your flag first.  You were better off being on defense rather than offense, he’d noticed and a few times in between he would shouts tips at you. Lower yourself, don’t just rely on your rifle, you’re making too much noise.  Even the simplest corrections in your posture was helping you sneak around to get the drop on him.

Most of all, you were having fun and from the grins you continued to spot on his face, so was Gabe.  The score was at 5 to 4 with you in the lead, you had yet to even get closer to his flag, but this time you’d thought of a decoy and stripped off the black protective jacket you’d geared yourself up in before the matches began.  Gabe hadn’t taken a single mid-range body shot all evening, which left you confident in your own safety with your most recent plan of attack.

You secured your jacket around a foam barrell and pulled the pins on the last of your smoke grenades.  There were three left, which was more than enough to cover the area you wished to cloak, but it raised your chances of catching Gabe completely unaware.  You’d pay him back for the red stripe across your throat. You grinned to yourself as you launched your belt of active smoke grenades around the wall you were hidden behind.

Gabe was hiding behind a thick box across from your position and you knew your plan would work.  You didn’t try to conceal your footsteps as you raced towards the box, dropping to slide when you saw the smoke shift as he popped over the top and fire off two rounds.  The foam barrel under your arm came in handy at that point. Decoys were so useful. You threw it over the wall and it landed with a thumb at the same time you rounded the opposite side.

You were eating up the distance quickly and just as you reached down to jerk your marker knife from the sheath on your thigh Gabe whirled around.  Two shots were fired and you felt like you’d taken a swing from a sledgehammer to your sternum, directly between your breasts. You fell backwards with a gasp of pain as you landed on the shoulder that had taken the second direct shot.

As you lay gasping on the ground the smoke clears around you.  Your eyes are wrenched shut as you try to focus on getting your lost breath back into coordination, but it’s possibly the hardest feat you’d ever had to conquer before.  Paintballs were no joke and you’d never been shot before, but in your head you figured that the pain you were feeling now was very similar to how it would feel if it were an actual bullet.

“Reider?”  Gabe’s concerned tone breaks through the pain clouding your head and you peek an eye open to see him moving hastily in your direction.  He’s scowling fiercely and there’s no doubt in your mind that the glint you see in his eyes is him preparing to chew you out in several different ways.  He pushes you onto your back and you suck in a shuddering breath as your hand flies to your sternum.

His eyes track your hand and you see his eyes widen.  “Holy shit.”

You cough as he moves your hand out of the way and he jerks your tank top up to your chin.  A noise of protest gets caught in your throat. Your cheeks darken as his gentle fingers prod around the welt between your breasts.  Little zings of awareness race up and down your spine causing more heat to rush to your cheeks.

His finger catches on the smallest sliver of paintball shell embedded in your skin and you gasp shakily.  His hand freezes in its course and you meet his gaze. Gabe’s dark pools are full of concern that brings a tender feeling to life in your chest.  You suck in another breath and it’s like the dam formed by the sudden shock and pain breaks. You breathing returns to normal, even if the pain doesn’t reduce and you give him a half smile.

“It’s okay.”  You finally reassure him.  “I was trying to catch my breath.”

You move to sit up, wincing from the ache that spreads from your sternum.  Gabe quickly places his hand on your back and assists you the rest of the way until you’re upright.  Your tank top slides down to cover your sports bra but it halts from covering the rest of your torso, you can’t be bothered to correct it as you look down to the red injury swelling between your breasts.  You know it’s going to continue to bruise and overnight it would spread across your chest, which will make tomorrow’s training hurt like hell.

“Let’s go see the medical wing.”  Gabe tells you, his hand firm where he’s holding your bicep in his gloved hand.  Somehow you manage to stand without winding yourself and accept Gabe’s silent offer of support.  “Are you having trouble breathing?”

“No Gabe, it just hurts is all.  It’s going to swell some more and leave a bruise, but I don’t think anything major happened.”  You rub your fingers over the welt and hiss out a breath of pain, but when you meet Gabe’s eyes you smile up at him.  “I almost had you.”

He snorted and as the two of you walked through the hallway the pair of you start laughing quietly, garnering attention from the lounge as you pass through on your way to the medical ward.  You’re pretty sure this isn’t the strangest sight any of the field agents had ever seen before, but still they stare. Probably because Gabe and you are covered with paint splatters, your shirt still isn’t situated correctly and there’s a giant splotch of red paint staining your white tank top.  It’s definitely not a secret that today was the day Gabe set for his date with you, but they all began to question what the two of you had gotten yourselves into.

“What do you suppose they’re thinking?”  You ask Gabe as you catch Lucio, Lena and Fareeha staring at the two of you with priceless matching expressions of bewilderment as you passed by them at the pool table.  

“I’m not sure, but…”  Gabe looked down at you and smiled before flicking his eyes across the room.  You followed his gaze to find Hana looking at you with a horrified expression.  “I think we both can guess what’s on your handler’s mind.”

There’s a sense of foreboding in the air as you and Gabe near the archway that will take you out into the hallway that leads to the medical ward.  There’s definitely some tension to be felt between you and Hana as she steps in your path and plants her hands on her hips. She makes a show of looking at you from head to toe.  She lifts a hand out in front of her body and starts counting on her fingers, lifting them and lowering them to indicate at least ten of whatever she’s been counting.

“Ten bruises.  I see ten bruises.”  Hana says clearly upset, but it’s beyond your understanding why that should upset her.  Was she concerned for your welfare? Jesse lost his whole arm two years ago and from what you know Hana didn’t shed a tear, but you know she cares about her fellow field agents.  Okay, so maybe that’s not the case. So then why?

“That’s to be expected when someone plays paintball.”  You venture carefully, your brows knitting together as you confusion grows and her expression becomes one of disbelief.  Wow, that was familiar. 

“Are you serious right now Reider?”

Uh yea?  “Completely.”

She scoffs and throws her hands up in the air.  Her face is becoming red and flushed with what you can only guess is anger.  Then she starts in. “Bruises can’t be completely covered with makeup and what if the paint in your hair dyes it?  I can’t believe you’re sabotaging our win like this! You’ll never get the daily points for the competition now.” Her voice rises as she speaks and you feel Gabe’s hand on your waist tense, but he stays quiet while you absorb everything and try to dig way deep down in your reserves of patience to gather it before you respond.

She takes your silence for acceptance of her accusations however and turns to Gabe, pointing an accusing finger in his direction.  “You should have gone easy on her.” Wait what? 

“What did you just say?”  You asked, stepping forward. Gabe’s hand fell from your waist and you heard him take a step back.  He wasn’t about to interfere in what didn’t involve him. You would handle this without any assistance.

“He should have gone easy on you.  Or actually, you shouldn’t even be doing anything that could risk bruising or injuring you.  It’s really hard to cover bruises with makeup. How are we going to get the daily points Reider?  They’re super important thi -” Hana complained as she reached out in an attempt to cup your face, you jerked back out of her reaching hands.

You took a deep breath, then another and then  _ another _ .  You were trying to summon your boastful patience, but it wasn’t coming to you.  You couldn’t even find the words to use to begin and try to correct Hana’s way of thinking.  Her priorities were so screwed up you didn’t know where to begin. You rubbed the bridge of your nose and as your eyes clenched shut you heard Hana snort sarcastically.

“What have you got to be frustrated about Reider?  You’re not the one who has to come up with a plan to fi-”  Your eyes immediately came open and you glowered at the young agent.  

“Fix?  What are you trying to fix Agent Song?  You’re not fixing, you’re changing and you’ve been trying to change everything about me for weeks.”  You accused as you took another step forward, your chest hurt from how quickly you were breathing, but you couldn’t calm your irritation.

“I wouldn’t have to if you actually wanted to win!”  She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

You took a deep breath to give yourself a chance to stomp out the anger that sparked in your heart.  You failed. “Winning isn’t what the tradition of this competition was started for. You’re so blinded by winning that you’re ignoring what’s important.  The fact that this competition isn’t about winning, it’s about getting to know one another and building trust. If the score was based off who knew their partner best by the end of the month, we would lose!”

“You’re not the easiest person to get to know Reider.”  She says and you… You take a breath and look up to the ceiling.  Then when you lower your eyes to meet her gaze she’s still staring at your bruises and you can practically  _ see _ the mental gears in her head turning to find a quick-fix to something she personally finds as a flaw.  

In that moment, you know you’re wasting your breath because she’s not getting your point.  Your message, your feelings are falling on deaf ears and it’s perhaps the most frustrating experience you’ve ever run into during your time at Overwatch.  Your temper flares instantly becoming white hot.

“Stop, just stop.”  You demand and she gives you a confused look.  “You can’t… you  _ will not _ treat me like I constantly need fixed.  The additional training with Jesse isn’t worth the price of continuing on as your personal play toy.”

“If you would’ve just trained with Jesse today we wouldn’t even be arguing.”  Hana piped up, not one to be patronized and not one to ever know when to shut her mouth.  “At least with Jesse’s training he’s going easy enough on you not to leave bruises.”

What?  The ability to form words suddenly escapes your grasp and you feel like, for the second time that day, you’ve been bludgeoned in the chest.  Apparently something must have registered on your face because the heat went out from Hana’s eyes and her hand flew to cover her mouth as if she’s just advertised a national security secret.  Your lips trembled ever so slightly and you pursed them to keep them still. You were at a loss.

Was she telling the truth or was she simply saying whatever she could think of to hurt you because it’s in the heat of the moment?  You wished it were the latter, but you could already confirm it was the former just from her expression alone. That crushed you. You were giving your all for the competition.  You were putting up with so much to meet Hana’s ridiculous standards. You were doing everything in your power to uphold you end of the bargain so that you could train with Jesse to prepare yourself for the upcoming exam that…

That was everything to you.  It meant everything to you to pass this exam.  It was your last chance to become what you’ve dreamt of becoming since you were a child.  A field agent. You wanted to do more than guide, you wanted to be more than someone behind the scenes.  Even though you know your job is just as important and just as crucial to Overwatch and that even without aiming to become a field agent you loved what you do.  You contribute to Overwatch and make sure your agent gets back safe and sound. Just contributing takes some of the edge off the passion burning in your chest to become a field agent, but being a handler isn’t your dream.  It’s not your dream and it never will be.

That’s why you feel like your heart’s being crushed in your chest as you realize that your dream is coming in second to a competition of vanity that you couldn’t care less about.  By the single person who you could say was your friend here. The single person that over the last three years you’d built up the foundations of your trust with and given your all to, in a position that you don’t have, but isn’t your dream.  To have your dream trampled on by that one person fills you with an unholy amount of rage.

Every inch of trust you feel shattered in one moment, one little statement blew everything to smithereens and left you in a free fall towards the uncertain.  You feel your legs move, but you’re not in control. You’re moving on autopilot, away from Hana and away from the hurt. A sour, bitter taste coats your tongue while a burning sensation prickles at the corners of your eyes.

“Reider?”  Gabe calls after you, but you don’t stop.  You can’t speak with the heavy knot in your throat that makes you have to keep swallowing around it just to breathe.  Though you want to. With every fiber of your being you want to scream out the hurt welling up inside you.

“Reider, stop.”  He calls after you again, but you just can’t bring yourself to stop.  You’re so close to being pushed that last step and it was already taking everything you had to ignore the annoying ringing in your ears caused by the murmured voices whispering about you.  You want to get out of here, you need to get as far from here as you possibly could. You needed distance.

You crashed into a firm chest and a pair of hands settled on your arms.  You looked up and met the eyes of the last person you wanted to see right now.  You felt that final push as you searched Jesse’s face. He knew. He knew you knew.  You could see the apology forming on his lips.

You shoved against his chest, hard and he released you.  “Rei-”

“Don’t you fucking dare.”  Your voice crack as you stabbed your finger into his chest.  Fuck it. You decide as you feel your hurt spill over in a flood of hot, stinging tears.  “You don’t get to stomp on my effort and then apologize when the jig’s up.”

“Reider, hear me out.”  He stepped forward and your body reacted instantly.  Your fist connected with his jaw, snapping Jesse’s head to side from the force.

“Stay the hell away from me Jesse McCree.”  You whisper as your voice breaks. You walked a wide loop around him, out of reach and leave the lounge.  You’re so caught up in your own hurt you don’t realize Gabe’s following a step behind you, watching you break down silently.  He makes his presence known when you near the hall to your quarters.

He grabs your arm softly and when you look at him, his heart breaks for you.  He’s never felt so stuck before. Stuck in the way that he doesn’t know what to say to make you feel better, stuck in the way that he holds a heavy fist of power, but the one time he longs to put it to good use, he can’t.  He’s soft and coaxing as he leads you towards your quarters. He doesn’t ask for your permission to enter once the two of you are outside of your door, he waits quietly and patiently as you retrieve your ID tag and slid it into the chip reader then he opens the door for you and guides you inside with a palm on the small of your back.

The lights come on automatically, a soft hue that illuminates every corner of your private space.  It’s as neat and orderly as he expected, though he notices personal objects scattered here and there.  Your desk is lined with books that show you’ve read them at least a dozen times and laying out over top of your desk is work files, a field agent handbook that’s highlighted in and has pages dog eared and shows its use.  Hanging from the back of your desk chair is his sweater, no longer soaking wet but still damp.

Your bed is unmade and the blanket overtop looks like the most comfortable item but Gabe’s palm on your stomach prevents you from crawling into your bed immediately.  You look up to him and he gives you a small shake of his head.

“Let’s get you a shower first, you’ll get paint everywhere otherwise.”  Oh. Right.

You nod mechanically.  “Good point.” You whisper and shit, his heart tugs in his chest as he watches you disappear into your ensuite bathroom.  He hears the shower turn on and then not five minutes later you’re emerging from the bathroom, steam rolls out from the open doorway and you walk out wrapped up in a fluffy towel.

The paint’s completely gone from the skin it once covered and he notices a few bruises on your arms and legs he hadn’t seen before.  There’s no sense of guilt as he looks at them, knowing that when you’d earned them you were smiling and asking for another rematch. It brought a fond smile to his face and he stripped off his gloves, placed them on your bedside table and turned back to you.

“Mind if I borrow your shower?”  You shook your head and stepped out of the way for him to pass.  You changed into a pair of plaid night shorts and a black tank top as Gabe showered.  You were searching your closet for the extra large sweatpants you had stored somewhere, they would probably fit Gabe.  You found them on top of a stack of old boxes.

“I’m not sure if they’ll fit, but they’re the biggest I can offer.”  You say as you turn to Gabe, holding the black sweatpants out.

He checks the tag and a slow smile lifts the corner of his mouth.  “They’ll work.” He tells you and when your back is turned to him he drops the towel from around his waist and slide on the sweatpants as you settle into your bed.  You look him over and notice they’re not quite Gabe’s size, he could use at least a size larger but they also don’t look uncomfortable. You watched him towel off his head and chest before he went back into the bathroom to hang up the towel.

The faucet came on and when Gabe emerged from the bathroom once more he carried a glass of water with him.  He handed it to you as he slid under your blankets beside you. 

“Ten minutes Reider, that’s how long you have before someone from Angie’s team shows up to look at your knuckles and the welt on your chest.  After they leave, we’re going to talk about that mess. You’re going to get it all off your chest and then we’re going to sleep.” He said as he took the glass from your hand, set it on the bedside table then pulled you against his chest.  Gabe looped and arm around you, his fingers brushing over the bare skin on your arm idly.

“You’re staying?”  You inquired as you looked up to him.

“Do you think you can force me to leave?”  He countered.

“You’re not the kind of man to put me in that position, Gabe.”  You said to him. “But I don’t want you to leave either.”

“I’m not leaving then, but no funny business Reider, I don’t put out on the first date.”  He joked and warmth blossomed in his chest as you smiled. Albeit a small, wobbly smile, but a smile nonetheless.

You laid your head back down on his chest and traced patterns with the tips of your fingers over the grooves of his muscular body.  You were still distracted with thoughts of earlier when a knock sounded on your door. Gabe answered the door as you sat on the edge of your bed.  The medic came and went after cleaning your knuckles and removing small fragments paintball shell from the two welts on your shoulder and sternum. Other than some swelling your welts were going to continue to bruise, your knuckles would ache but you were told to put ice on them.

You agreed numbly to the medic’s advice and when she left, you were left alone with Gabe again.  Staring down at your hand, you couldn’t keep from remembering and replaying the moment you punched Jesse.  You’d never resorted to violence in your life, the worst you’d ever done to Jesse was pull his ear or pinch his arm.  You wanted to crawl in a hole your guilt was so strong. Though another part of yourself argued it was deserved. 

It was.  After what Jesse had done.  You felt like a broken record with your thoughts circling around and around.  You were tucked against Gabe’s chest again and quite some time had passed since the medic left.  His blunt nails scraped along the nape of your neck and into your hairline, soothing you with the gentle contact.  At your deep breath, Gabe cleared his throat and pulled the blankets higher up on both of you.

His voice was a low whisper as he began speaking to you.  “What are you going to do with Jesse?”

You met his gaze and offered a slow shrug.  “I’m not sure.” You glance down at your bruising knuckles and sighed deeply.  “I’m going to be mad for tonight. Then in the morning I’m going to pull myself together and go to work.  He has a mission tomorrow and I can’t trust anyone else to look after him like I do.”

Gabe’s chest bounced with a sharp but quiet laugh.  His thumb massaged into the base of your neck, working out a knot he felt beneath your skin.  “You’re nice, Reider.” He said the statement in a tone that made him sound surprised and you lifted a brow in question.

“You were crying Reider, you were... _ are _ so angry and hurt.  But you’re moving to higher ground, you’ve set yourself a time limit to be mad and I know you’re the type of woman to follow through genuinely.  In the morning you’re not going to be angry, you’re going to go to work and help Jesse.” He said and you watched him talk about you. You teared up because he was talking like he knew you and you felt like he did.  Know you. “I’m not that nice, Reider. If I’m mad…”

“Everyone knows it and gets out of sight for the next two days.”  You finish for him and he wipes your cheeks free from the tears. The two of you smile at what you’ve said and you laugh quietly.  “You’re a lot more intimidating than me when you’re mad, Gabe.”

“I’m not so sure.  The lounge’s temperature plummeted when you were having it out with Hana.  No one’s seen you mad Reider, you’ve been here for three years and the agents, myself even, we’ve never seen it.  You have bad days when you’re thoroughly shot in the patience department, but you’ve never been mad. You’re upbeat, you’re welcoming, you’re efficient in meeting Jesse’s demands when he’s chattering at you through the commlink.  You know how to get him to… rationalize and I immediately saw improvement in him after the first month we paired you off.” He took a deep breath and the arm wrapped around you tightened. You hike your leg up over his and soak up more of his body heat bleeding through the sweatpants stretched tight over his muscular thighs.  He waits until you’re readjusted before he continues. “I knew all of that before your name was drawn for the competition. Honestly, that first week I admit I was happy you didn’t participate. I just had this feeling something was going to happen.”

“Something did happen.”  You sighed. You were disappointed in yourself for showing him, as your superior and as someone who was quickly finding a way into the deepest parts of your heart, the side of yourself that you found unsightly. 

“Yes, it did.  There’s no reason you should feel bad about losing your cool Reider.  Hana’s been pushing you for weeks and like you said, she’s been trampling over your feelings just to win.  You’re right that that’s not what the competition is held for. It’s supposed to be fun, a change of pace for the base’s morale.  If you’re not happy, as a contestant, then morale’s not getting the boost the competition is meant for.” He said and you nodded. 

“It’s also supposed to give the field agents the experience of putting themselves in a handler’s position.  Some get taken for granted and Jack - Commander Morrison and I noticed it happening. Captain Amari was the one who started the tradition and it’s been going strong for years, but admittedly I think it’s time we pull the reins on it.”  Gabe told you his thoughts about the changes he wanted to make and the rules he wanted to add just from your experience this time around alone. He wanted to make sure the contestants had responsible handlers for the competition and as you listened to him you felt better.  You shared your own opinion in the matter and warmth blossomed in your chest when he  _ listened _ .  The two of you laughed and joked, shared the interesting stories of the last two weeks with one another.

He grimaced as you told him about the first day, your makeover and he combed his fingers through your short hair.  

“I hate contacts.”  You admit and he smirks at you.

“They have their uses Reider, but you choose what you want to use. Your glasses or contacts, either way you’re still you.  You’ll still be you in designer clothes or that one size too big sweater.” He smiled and you felt your heart jump. You leaned up on your elbow and reached over him to your nightstand, you grabbed the contact lense holder and started twisting off the caps.  Before long the contacts were removed from your eyes and you were placing the holder back onto the nightstand.

“Better?”  Gabe asked you as you settled against his chest.  He watched you blink up at him smile at him he knew you were feeling much better than earlier.

“Mhm.” Even though your sight was blurred you could still make out his expressions from how close you were and if you narrowed your eyes enough.  The two of you fell into a bout of silence, listening to each other breathe while your head was tucked under his chin. His hands smoothed down your back, hitching up the hem of your tank top on accident with every sweep.

You yawned tiredly against his chest that you were drawing patterns on with your fingers.  “Gabe?”

“Hmm?”  He responded, the noise was thick with sleep.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Anything babe.”  Gabe whispered as he rubbed his cheek over the top of your head.  He liked feeling the softness of your hair and the scent of your shampoo.

“Why’d you come here?  I can’t figure out why you stayed.”  You admit and his hand stills on the small of your back.  He makes a humming noise low in his throat and the his hand is smoothing up the bare skin along your spine, your tank top hikes up higher but you don’t mind. It’s innocently done.

“We are still on our date.”  He finally says. You laugh against his chest, short and sweet but full of all the humor you had left in you.  Gabe waits until you’re quiet again to continue. “Reider, I think I’ve been making myself pretty obvious, I didn’t want to leave you alone.  I hadn’t planned on staying the night, but when I got here, I didn’t want to leave.”

“I don’t want you to either.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

You’re not sure who initiated it, but you tilted your head back at the same time he craned his forward.  Your lips brushed against his and he cupped your cheek in his palm. Your first shared kiss is tender and slow, his lips work over yours until your mouths slot together.  There’s a hesitance that lingers at the beginning and awareness fills your senses. His body heat has long since seeped to blend with yours, but now it feels hotter. Trace amount of his cologne lingers on his clean skin and his lips feel soft against yours.

The hand cupping your cheek sent a thumb to smooth over the apple of your cheek and the palm against your back holds you firm against Gabe’s chest.  You bring your hand up his chest to slide against his neck. Out of all of your firsts, this first stands out like a beacon, as if it were the light of a lighthouse designating a ship away from a rocky shore.  It feels right. You fit perfectly in Gabe’s arms and he feels wonderfully in yours. Strength meeting strength and tenderness being returned.

His tongue slips into your mouth and his blunt nails trail a line down your back, raising bumps on your skin and causing you to shiver your pleasure.  Gabe’s body is hard where yours is soft, his kiss is demanding and you are accepting. Open, welcoming. Meeting his demands and returning them to him.

The kiss that had started so innocently, so tenderly, became electric and teasing.  Testing. You find yourself being shifted onto your side, he tilts your head and explores your mouth with his tongue.  You encourage him with a soft breath and a quiet moan. His hand slides from your back, travelling under your shirt along your ribs, feeling the grooves of your lithe body.  You may not come close to the condition Gabe keeps his body in, but you’re no slouch either and he finds you perfect. Soft and sweet, but fiery and demanding. 

You nibble his lower lip just as his fingers brush against the swell of your breast.  Your gasp as he groans, almost a growl, low in his throat. His hand cups your breast and his thumb grazes your peeked nipple.  Your body tingles from the places he’s touched and you work your arms up and around his neck, anchoring him to you as your fingers find purchase in his short brown hair.  His goatee scrapes and tickles against your chin when he shifts. Hot breath fans across your cheek and then the two of you separate. He follows up the kiss with another, the lightest of pecks are placed on either side of your lips at the corners. You can’t keep the smile from your face, or the gasp from escaping your throat as he squeezes your breast just before slipping his hand away to rest on your ribs.  Just below your breast.

He guides your arms from around his neck as he shifts the two of you onto your sides.  He slides up directly behind you, his chest flush with your back as he hooks a leg over yours to drag them between his own.  Gabe’s arm pillows your head and his hand finds its place under your shirt and against your ribs again. You snuggle into him and pull the blanket up to the your waists.

“I’m staying.”  Gabe declares as he places a kiss on the nape of your neck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the kudos! Hope you all liked some drama.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a shorter update than what I've posted so far, but I've decided to double update because of it. I'm glad so many of you are enjoying it so far. A wee bit more drama to come but it's coming to a close.

At the time you hadn’t realized his statements full worth.  As a confession of his feelings. You fall asleep and in the morning, Gabe’s there and he’s warm and you feel the best you’ve felt since the competition began.  He gives you a kiss before he leaves to return to his quarters for a change of clothes and while you’re getting ready he returns, with an arm of his clothes that he stacks on top of your wardrobe beside your closet.

You don’t comment on it as you finish lacing up your boots.  He claims your hand as you leave your quarters together and he doesn’t let go as you walk with him into the canteen.  It matters little to him when heads turn as you walk past the full tables so you take your cue from him and decide to not let it matter to you either.

“We missed dinner, you should order more than that.”  He chastises as you walk towards an open table. You glance down at your tray and take stock of what your breakfast is; two pancake, some bacon and sausage links, hash browns and a tall glass of orange juice.  Your usual for a monday morning. Then you looked over to Gabe’s tray that he placed down on the table beside yours. A higher stack of pancakes rested beside his bacon and sausage links. He carried a tall mug of black coffee and popped a grape into his mouth as he settled into the seat next to yours.

Completely at ease.  You chuckled and pulled the holopad from the deep pocket of your fatigues.  

“This is more than enough for me.”  You tell him as you pull open your emails and start skimming through them as you start in on your breakfast.  You felt Gabe’s eyes on you, all warm and fond, you could feel the heat building in your cheeks. “What?” 

“I can’t look at you?  You know I have full access to your emails right?”  He teased between bites of his meal. You laughed under your breath and slid your finger over the holopad’s screen.  A new email popped up upon your command and your fork of sausage paused halfway to your mouth.

“Sure, I’m aware of your rank, but my emails aren’t what’s interesting you.”  You say as you nudge your elbow against his arm.

“You caught me.”  He feigned defeat then grinned at you.  “I was gauging your mood.”

“My mood?  I’m fine today, I slept and forgot about…”  You waved your hand in a small gesture. “Drama, my problems, my stress.”

“Hmm, then I accomplished my mission.”  His arm rested across the back of your chair and the two of you went back to your meals.  

You responded to a few emails and continued your long-term correspondence with a recruit in Russia.  By the time you caught up with the immediate emails you were finished with your meal and finishing off the last of your orange juice.  Gabe had gotten up for another mug of coffee and was halfway through his second refill when you tucked your holopad away. You sat back in your seat and Gabe’s arm descended over your shoulders.

“What’s on the agenda for today Reider?”  He asked you when you turned to him.

“Jesse’s heading out in two hours for a mission across the Mexico border, so I don’t have my normal duties that I would.  I have to go through my checklist, make sure all the papers are in order and he has everything he needs.” You rub your hand over your forehead then pull your glasses off, folding them and laying them on the table in front of you.  “Then, I’m going to be chained to a desk in comm. until he returns.”

He hummed as he sipped on his steaming mug.  Gabe’s brow lifted as he tilted his head to the side.  “Are you going to leave the tension where it’s at for today then?”

“From your tone you think I shouldn’t.”  Comes your casual response.

“It could distract him.  He looks like a kicked puppy.”  He tells you and your eyebrows squeeze together in confusion.  You reach for your glasses when Gabe closes his hand around yours.  “Don’t let his guilt persuade you Reider, you make your own decisions, don’t let that become a factor.  Your hurt is greater than his.”

He’s right.  He makes a good point.  But truthfully your hurt doesn’t sting so much this morning.  There’s a pit in your stomach that’s been bothersome since you opened your eyes, but it’s not from finding out what Jesse had been doing.  The pit that was left now was because you missed your friend. You hated drama, but more than that you hated distance. You had needed it yesterday because everything was overwhelming you, but today you didn’t need it.  You wanted to fix this mess before it could really begin to do damage.

You squeeze Gabe’s hand and press a chaste kiss to his lips, you miss but still catch the corner of his mouth which works just as well.  “I want to talk to him. Not to avoid accidents on his mission, but because I  _ want _ to.  We’re both not the type to stew over a problem that can be mended quicker with a conversation.”

He smiled slightly and nodded his acceptance of your choice.  Then you heard him suck in a deep breath and the voice he released was booming.  “McCree!” He shouted, interrupting the quiet hum of conversation and thoroughly silencing the canteen.  You heard the clatter of a chair being pushed back and turned in time to see a blurred silhouette of Jesse approaching where you sat.  Once again you reached for your glasses and pulled them on as Jesse came to a stop in front of Gabe.

He looked like hell and you wondered if he hadn’t slept well last night.  Though you didn’t have to wonder for long, his jaw was covered in unshaven stubble, his eyes were bloodshot and the bags under his eyes were dark enough to reveal his sleepless night.  It took away more of your hurt to see him in this state. It showed you how much it affected him. Your eyes dropped to the purple bruise on his jaw and you sucked in a sharp breath. Jesse wasn’t looking at you and you were reminded of your parting words to him, you felt the prickle of tears sting in your eyes.  

You lowered your face as you lifted your glasses and wiped the tears away.  With a deep breath you gathered yourself. Shoulders squared and teary eyes dried you pushed your glasses up and looked back up to Jesse.  “You’re loud and noisy and can be too stubborn for your own good at times, Jesse and you hurt the trust we’ve built, but something’s off about what Agent Song said.  I can’t… I just can’t accept that you would go easy on me because you were avoiding bruising me.”

You watched his whole body stiffen as you addressed him and as you continued to talk you watched his eyes.  Watched the emotions moving with every flicker and when you added the last part you watched his whole demeanor darken.  It confirmed your suspicions as well as set guilt in your heart.

“Come here Jesse.” You said as you extracted yourself from Gabe’s arm and stood, holding your arms open to him.  He was hesitant at first, but upon a shake of your arms he stepped forward. You wrapped your arms around his neck as you rose to the tips of your toes to crush him in a strong hug.  You tilted your head to continue, this time in a whisper. “You look like hell Jesse.”

He returned your hug in a crushing hold that expressed his heavy, unspoken thoughts.  “I didn’t go easy on ya because of the competition. I didn’t… I wouldn’t do that to ya Reider.  I went easy because I saw how exhausted ya were and I got worried. I shouldn’t have done it, I shoulda just asked ya what ya wanted to do.”  He murmured against your neck as he buried his face in the crook of your shoulder.

“You should have, but you didn’t and well now everything’s a bit of a mess.  I’m okay now Jesse. Are we okay?”

He nodded and held you tighter.  You patted him on his back and grunted out a breath when his hold became too tight.  “J-Jess-e.”

“McCree.”  Came Gabe’s warning voice directly behind you.  Jesse laughed as he released you, the atmosphere between you two felt lighter, more normal.

“I’m sorry for punching you Jesse.”  As you spoke Jesse shook his head. You held up your hand as you continued.  “You deserved it, for going easy on me. But that doesn’t make it right and I feel bad, but it happened and it’s done.  Now I have a checklist to get through, you have breakfast to finish and then I want you to go sleep until you have to leave.  I’ll get your bag loaded.”

“Ya can’t -”

“I have help.”  You interrupted as you reached behind you and snagged Gabe by his shirt, pulling him forward.  You gave Jesse a wide, reassuring smile. “I’ll worry more about you on your mission if you don’t get some rest, I mean it Jesse…”

“Don’t make her worry any more McCree.”  Gabe said firmly and the brunet in front of you ducked his head.  Without another word Jesse returned to the table he’d left and finished his meal.  You watched him follow your request as you and Gabe left the canteen.


	5. Chapter 5

The evening before your exam is the last day of the competition you’d dropped out of a week ago.  With some persuading Gabe has managed to convince you to join the rest of the festivities by telling you that just because you weren’t in the competition didn’t mean you couldn’t go to enjoy yourself and have a chance to relax before your exam tomorrow.  Over the last week you’d been working hard with your studies and Gabe had taken it upon himself to give you some pointers when you trained in the evenings. Jesse also joined you and this time he didn’t go easy on you.

Your bruises had bruises and you went to bed every night aching.  But the bright side to that was that every night you’d spent it in either your own quarters with Gabe or in his quarters.  Right now you were changing into a spare pair of clothes you’d left over at his place a few nights ago and he was on the other side of the room, holopad in hand as he lounged in his sturdy, comfy recliner.

The two of you had already breezed past each others comfort zones and you no longer excused yourself from the room to change.  He no longer felt like he shouldn’t stare at you while you changed either. Intimacy was something the two of you opened up to quickly with one another, Gabe was a man of quiet affection and you learned quickly that he was better at showing he cared through actions rather than words.  You weren’t surprised in the least or put off, since you enjoyed the change in your relationship. Poetic declarations of your emotions just weren’t either of your styles. So, the two of you had formed an undeclared relationship that was the gossip of many around the base.

Gossip that both of you ignored and dismissed for what it was.  Neither of you were concerned about your positions, you both kept to your duties and he didn’t show you any favoritism in the least.  Though he had been stopping by your desk more often, only to see you for lunch or before you were off the clock so that you two could walk to the training room together.

“You’re wearing leggings?”  He asked you as you snapped the waistband of the black material on your hip.

“Mhm.”  You hummed as you balanced on one foot to roll on a fluffy pair of socks.  The same pair you’d bought for yourself earlier that week when Gabe had suggested a visit to the city for a dinner date alone.  You looked up to him as you switched feet. “Why?”

Reading his expression made you smile.  He was giving you the look you’d come to recognize as his are-you-really-asking-me-that expression.  “Because it’s been getting cold at night and it’s going to be even colder near the lake?”

“I guess you’ll just have to warm me up if I get cold then.”  You told him. He stood from his seat and crossed the room as you shoved your feet into a pair of boots.  As you stood upright you turned to face him. “Ready?”

“After you babe.”  He made a wide sweeping gesture with his hand and you smirked.  

-

Hours into the night you made yourself comfortable on Gabe’s lap with your cold hands buried under his shirt and pressed against his warm skin.  He’s somehow managed to zip up his jacket around the two of you and he had the hoodie of it pulled up to block the cool wind coming in off the lake.  Your nose was cold pressed against his neck but you weren’t shivering anymore.

“Told you so.”  He whispered to you as he slid his hand over your thigh.

“S-shuttup.”  You said between chattering teeth as you stared at the bonfire licking its flames high from the burning pile of logs that the junkers had kept piling higher and higher until Commander Morrison had come over to put a stop to it.  The same Commander Morrison who was now seated beside Gabe and yourself.

He had laughed to himself quietly when you’d come to Gabe earlier demanding his jacket.  You caught him glancing over a few times now, you caught him smiling at the two of you a few times in the middle of bickering with Gabe.  You got the feeling that Commander Morrison found your change of presence in Gabe’s life as a new source for amusement. You were beginning to be able to read the slight changes in both Commanders when they were relaxing instead of being what their positions demanded of them to be.

Jack, as he insisted you start to call him in private, laughed and smiled a lot more when he was relaxing and talking with Gabe.  You hoped in the future you’d be able to understand more about their friendship, but for tonight you weren’t going to let your curiosity distract you.  You slid your hands around Gabe’s torso to slide up his back.

“I’m forcing you to change next time.”  He tells you and Jack laughs from the seat over.  You feel goosebumps raise on Gabe’s skin and you nod your agreement.  You didn’t need an excuse to snuggle up to him and you wish you would’ve remembered that while you were dressing earlier.

Though you couldn’t let him think he was getting away with telling you  _ I-told-you-so _ .  So you countered. “We’d be warmer if we were closer to the fire.” 

Brown eyes met yours and you grinned up at Gabe.  He rolled his eyes and pressed his forehead against yours, then in the most serious tone he could muster.  “Have you not been watching Jacky chase off those junkers every five minutes?” You turned thoughtful and he snorted.  “Exactly, right here is the safest place to avoid being set on fire, becoming part of the fire or getting in the junker brats’ way.”

Okay, that was being a little too dramatic.  You lifted your eyebrow at him, then lowered it.  Then again, he had a point. Your brows pinched together.  A valid point. You’d seen plenty of weird shit happen only to find one of the two junkers to be behind such events.  You nodded slightly to yourself then shivered and you pulled your forehead away from Gabe’s to look over to the fire. On the other hand, you were still cold.

“Pff -”  Jack snickered loudly, interrupting your thoughts.

“See what I mean, Jack?”  Gabe asked though he was looking at you.

You looked between the two Commanders with a frown.

“Oh yea, I see it now.”  Jack responded and you waited for one of them to explain.  You were left waiting a long while.

“See what?”  You prompted as you sat up, pulling Gabe with you from the shared sweater.  His hand on your thigh tightened a fraction and you quickly rebalanced your weight to spread over both of his thighs instead of just one.   _ You have a bone-y ass _ .  He had told you earlier when you were getting comfortable.  Though everyone has a bone-y ass if they put all their weight onto just one leg. You’d gotten your revenge for the comment immediately when you wiggled in his lap and dug your tailbone into his muscle.  Though he’d retaliated by pinching your thigh and that led to you trying to find small ways to get back at him.

“Your thoughts are easy to read, Reider.”  Jack answered.

“They aren’t.”  You denied.

“They are.”  Gabe pitched in.  You frowned and the pair laughed together, heat rose to your cheeks and you buried your face against Gabe’s chest.  “Asses.” You mumbled and they laughed harder.

After awhile they quieted and the three of you settled back into silence.  Enjoying the festivities going on around you. Field agents, handlers and colleagues alike roasted marshmallows and hotdogs while Jesse had started a card game of sorts at the table behind you.  A few people skipped rocks across the lake while others paired off to talk. Conversation filled the night with laughter and rowdiness. 

Gabe and Jack talked to one another but you zoned out of their conversation instead focusing on the warmth returning to you, seeping into you from Gabe.  You stared at the flames licking up towards the star filled sky and you realized, not for the first time this evening, that there was nowhere else you’d rather be.  You didn’t think about tomorrow’s exam that would decide the fate of your lifelong dream. You soaked up the feelings of enjoyment that this moment you had with Gabe brought.

You felt like you’d dozed off with your eyes open when a sudden bright flash brought reality back into focus.  You startled in Gabe’s lap and his arms locked around you to keep you in place as you looked around for the source.  You discovered a camera in the hands of Captain Amari standing in front of the chair Gabe occupied. The dark haired woman waved the camera in her hand while beaming you with a wide smile.

“I’ll print you two off a copy when I have these printed.”  She told you and you smiled at her as you melted back into Gabe’s chest with a yawn.

“I’d appreciate that Captain.” You told her and she waved her hand at you.

“Ana, dear.  Call me Ana.”  She winked at you before wandering off to snap more photos of the unsuspecting crowd.  Beneath you Gabe’s chest expanded widely with a mute yawn, his hand slid up your side to rest on your shoulder while his other rested high on your thigh.  You felt him press a kiss to the top of your head then he rested his chin on your head after. 

You looked to the bonfire and notice it’s gotten quite low and you wonder how long you’d slept. You don’t even remember falling asleep.  “What time is it?” You ask but from the even breaths puffing against the top of your head Gabe’s dozed off.

“A little after one in the morning.”  Came Jack’s response. You looked over to him.  “You’ve been sleeping for about two hours now. Gabe didn’t want to wake you up.  He told me you haven’t been sleeping as much in preparation for the exam tomorrow, do you feel ready for it Reider?”

“Mm, well I’ve done all I can at this point Comm-  Jack.” You stretch out your arms and upon your disturbance Gabe’s hand tightens its hold on your thigh, then his hand slides up only to come to rest on your ass.  Heat rises to your cheeks as you notice Jack’s eyes tracking the movement and then flick back up to meet yours. The two of you laugh quietly.


	6. Chapter 6

Gabe smiled fondly down at the picture he held in his hand.  It was of you and him from the previous night when the two of you had fallen asleep in the chair.  You look so small in comparison to his wider, more muscular build and he feels his heart tug with emotion as he studies the peacefulness of your expression.  Just a week ago such an expression had been erased and replaced with tear filled eyes, a wobbly chin and pinched brows. If he never had to see that expression again in his life he would be okay with that, though he wanted to be there if it ever did return and he never wanted to be the cause of it.

He placed the photo into the empty picture frame and slid the latches of the back into place before setting it down on his desk.  A glance at the watch on his wrist told him you had just begun the second half of your exam. Gabe stood from his chair, unable to keep himself in this state of wonder for a moment longer.  He could watch how you progressed from the observation room and that’s exactly what he planned on doing. He grabbed his beanie and tugged it on as he left his office and jogged towards his destination.

As he opened the room’s door he was surprised to find Jack and Jesse already watching your progress through the screens.  One monitor showed the simulation that had been generated for your exam already in progress and fed audio through the speakers.  While another showed a camera angle of you strapped in a chair, bound by thick straps around your wrists and ankles and thighs. You had electrodes attached to your inner elbow, reading and monitoring your pulse, on your wrists, temples, the nape of your neck, along your spine and on your ribs.  Most of the nodes were there to track the pulses sent out by the electrodes on your temples and to simulate the feeling of how you move even though you weren’t physically doing so. All of it was standard, but it was still a jarring scene for him to see you in. You looked like you were wired up for a scene in a sci-fi movie.

You looked calm however and that reassured him enough to settle the uncomfortable feeling that swelled in his chest.  As he stepped up beside Jack he received a silent nod of greeting that he returned with one of his own.

“How’s she doing so far?”

“It’s a breeze, but there’s… just somethin’ weird about this simulation.”  Jesse informed him and Gabe studied the brunet’s frown briefly before turning back to the screens.

“I have to agree with you McCree.”  Jack murmured thoughtfully, his hand scratching along his jawline from where he’d lifted it from where it rested previously folded across his chest.  The uncomfortable feeling in his chest made itself known as his dark eyes tracked the simulation’s feed.

“What’s the scenario?”

“Black tie affair.”  Jesse replied. “I think she’s supposed to blend in and gather intel.  There hasn’t been any indication of a rescue, it’s just a bunch of wanderer’s and gossipers.  Seems easy.”

“Too easy.” Jack commented.  Gabe had to agree. There was no way that was all there was to this simulation, the proctors screening the exams this year would’ve booted it out the door as soon as it presented itself.

“It’s still early in the simulation, all the factors might not have been been presented yet.”  Gabe states as he digs his hands into his pockets and watches. Almost on cue the simulation suddenly goes black, a generated scream filters into the room and the three of them look over to watch for your reaction.  Your face is scrunched into a tight look of confusion and focus, soaking in the sudden change, accepting it and filing it away. You remain calm and Gabe smiles.  _ Good girl. _  He praises mentally.

~

Your original thought of this simulation being an intelligence gathering is completely changed as the lights blink back on in your simulation.  You’d been listening to the lies and conjectures of the simulation’s party goers from the beginning, hearing rumors of something _big_ _going down tonight_.  Something about a big reveal.  Though you realize quickly as the scene opens up in front of you that _you_ were part of that big reveal.

You stare wide eyed down at the blood on your hands and the woman at your feet that had a pool of blood forming underneath her motionless body.  Briefly all thought escaped your mind as you stared down at the woman, you were stuck staring at your bloodied hands and wondering what had just happened.  You took a deep breath. You’d been walking and suddenly the power cut. You focused on what happened after, everything you’d heard. A shuffle of footsteps, two pairs.  Then you were bumped into and…

Your eyes jerked over to look at the knife that you’d heard hit the column nearby.  You found it in the hands of a black clad figure who was trying to casually conceal the weapon.  Here was your first choice that the simulation was throwing your way. It was easy enough to decide.  One, there was plenty of people around to call an ambulance. Two, among those people there is someone who will check the victims pulse.  No, you shake your head. 

“Is she breathing?” You ask in the simulation and then one of the party goers checks the victims pulse.  They confirm. 

“Don’t move her, call an ambulance.”  Someone with an unfamiliar voice says.  Awesome. You smile inwardly knowing the simulation had just killed two birds with one stone for you and opened up your chance to chase after the man you had seen concealing the blade.  You reacted instantly and began weaving between the people crowding you.

“It was her!”  You hear the woman in front of you declare as she looked horrified at your bloodied hands.  Ah shit. Another trial? Alright. Wait. Your brows pinched together in thought. It wasn’t a trial, it was a trap.  If you react, or deny your guilt you can only see the scenario going one way. Someone’s going to try to detain you. They’re all already convinced you’re guilty.  If you try to convince them otherwise you’ll waste enough time for the man to get away. Just what the simulation wants.

You press your lips together tightly.  If you react to her you’ll fail. The only choice you have left is to run.  Which just makes you look guilty. Fuck. You hope with every fiber of your being that this is the right choice, you rush the accuser and the crowd parts immediately.

The simulation doesn’t end.  Thank fuck. You spot your target ducking out of the emergency exit and you sprint to catch up.  It’s like one of the games of cat and mouse you’d been doing with Gabe for the last week you’re reminded as you reach the door and yank it open.  The gown the simulation has put you in constricts your movement, but you have a solution pop into your mind quickly. You’re suddenly thankful for the gown design’s slit running to the top of your hip.  As you emerge into the stairwell you jerk the gown up, hastily roll the material as neatly as possible and tie it. The material of the gown is heavy against your upper thighs, but it’s easier to move like this.

You race down the flights of stairs and you sigh in relief when you hear your targets footsteps on the floor below you.  You’ve caught up quickly and you start to focus on your surroundings. The stairwell is relatively bare and you notice a severe lack of security cameras, which is the only thing that stands out to you.  Although you also notice a severe lack of weapons lying around.

What could that mean?  You slow your steps, quiet them completely.  A door below you opens and you hear noises, a car idling.  A horn honking. It must lead to the outside. You assume there’s a getaway car waiting.  You launch yourself over the railing and roll as you land. Your technique isn’t quite as elegant as you’d expected, but you don’t injure anything as you pop back up from your sloppy tumble.  You squeeze through the door just before it closes and your eyes are forced to adjust to the darkness you burst into.

In front of you, walking leisurely, is your target.  Headed right for the black suv that’s idling. Waiting for him.  You take a moment to look for something to use as a weapon Soggy cardboard boxes and black bags of trash are your only options presented.  Nothing that will be immediately helpful comes into sight. You curse under your breath and lift your hand to push your hair back. Your hand freezes in front of your face and you absorb the jolt of knowledge your brain moulds into a solution.  You’re wearing elbow long gloves. You waste no time in stripping it off and wrapping the material around your hands. It was the only weapon you were getting and the only one you needed to disarm the target.

Your confidence grew as you charged the man with his back to you.  A foot away you launch yourself on the man’s back and throw your hands over his head.  Your glove pulls tight around the larger man’s neck and you plant your knees firmly into the man’s back.  He’s thrown off balance and falls forward, catching himself with his hands while you choke him relentlessly.

The muscles in your arms complain from the strain but you don’t let up until he stops struggling and you succeed in knocking him out.  As you stand your chest heaves but you know you’re not finished. Disable, disarm and disallow. Those three words scream out at you, lifting from a directory page of one of your training manuals.

Like a checklist you follow through with your training’s terms.  Disable. Done. Disarm. You look for the knife and carefully pick up the weapon with your gloved hand.  You toss it just out of reach but not out of sight. Done. Then you turn back to the unconscious man. Disallow.  Meaning don’t leave a hostile able to get back up and fight. You use your glove to bind the target’s hands together.  Done.

“God, those are handy.”  You say aloud intending the gloves as you wipe the sweat from your forehead onto your shoulder.  You’re breathing heavily as you stand up and remove yourself from the target’s back. You wait for the simulation’s end credits to appear.  They don’t.

You hear footsteps directly behind you at the last second.  A hand clamps down tightly on your mouth and an arm locks around your stomach.  You’re jerked from your feet and panic wells up in you, however you don’t let it consume and confuse you.  Jesse’s taught you how to handle these situations. Gabe’s put them into practice with you.

You pitch your elbow backwards at the same time as you let your body become dead weight.  The hand slides roughly up your face and the new hostile’s arm slips up your body to hook just under your breasts.  It’s not exactly what you intended, but it’s enough to give you mobility and the advantage. You twist in the attacker’s arm and jam your thumbs into the man’s eyes.

“Fucking bitch.”  The man snarls and you receive a knee to the stomach that has pain lancing through you.  You gag as you stumble backwards, but you remain on your feet and so long as you can get your breathing back under control you can take the advantage back.  He’s fighting blind for at least the next two minutes, you’re just winded. 

What happens next surprises you so much your body physically jerks in the chair outside of the simulation.  The EKG monitor goes wild for a frantic two heart beats and blares loudly in the observation room, startling the men watching your progress.  For one terrifying moment you believe you’ve failed the simulation as you stare at the dagger sticking out from your right shoulder. The second attacker was fighting  _ blind _ your thoughts screamed.  Yet he’d managed to throw a dagger and make it stick.  You’re so caught off guard you don’t notice he’s recovering quicker than you anticipated and was rushing you until his hand closed in around the dagger he’d thrown and he rips it out.

You grunt as the pain comes to life.  Blood streams down your shoulder and you know it’s been knocked out of commission for the rest of this fight.  Shit. You dodge the target’s stab and punch him in the jaw. His head doesn’t snap like Jesse’s had. You’re met with a bloodied, completely chilling smile that followed up with an attack so fast you can’t follow it.

It’s even faster than the attacks Gabe had in his arsenal.  Your mind latches onto that fact as the dagger stabs into your chest and with a sweeping downward motion, slices a deep gouge into your flesh.  The man doesn’t stop charging you either, an arm slams across your throat and your back is slammed into the brick wall of the alleyway. The attacker uses his whole body to trap you.  Again, you expect the simulation to end. 

Again, it doesn’t.  That terrifies you.

“Who da ya work for?”  The man demands and your eyes blow wide.  You remember the invitation you’d held earlier.  The name and company you worked with had been listed.  You locked your teeth together and glared at the attacker.  Your stomach flipped when you saw the twisted grin surface on the man’s face.  “Ya’ve tha kind of face someone wants ta hit, ya’know that?”

The man looks to his hand wrapped around a bloodied blade.  “‘Cept we’ve a problem ‘ere. I ain’t got no hands free. Mind holdin’ this fer me?”

Your upper lip peels back and you wheeze around the pressure being applied to your throat.  “I won’t pass up a weapon, place it in my hand and I’ll make sure your hands stay free.” You threaten and the man cackles at you.

“Ahh, I loike ya babygirl.”  The man taunted. You feel a chill sweep down your spine.  “Ya’ve got a sense o’ humor, butcha mouth ain’t sayin’ wot I wanna ‘ear.  Ya’know wot I really wanna hear?”

You don’t know why you say it, but the words are out of your mouth before you can stop them.  “How much your mommy loves you?”

The dagger stabbed into your hand instantly, pinning your hand to the wall and a scream erupts from your throat.  It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. Is all you can think. Your face twists up in pain and you gasp for breath as the attacker’s arm presses harder into your throat, just until you see black spots and then he backs off slightly and you suck in a large breath.  It burns.

The man makes a staccato noise similar to a buzzer from a game show on tv would when the player answers wrong.  “Tsk, tsk.” The attacker whispers in disappointment. “If ya didna need yer tongue ta answer my questions I’d cut it outta yer mouth.  Tell me wot I wanna know ‘fore I lose my patience girlie. Who da ya work fer?”

You remain silent, locking your molars together as you stare at the attacker.  For the moment you’ve forgotten about your exam, you’ve forgotten this is a simulation.  The pain you’re feeling is too real, the warmth of your bleed leaking from your gashes and stab wounds it too  _ warm _ .  The man punches you in the face and you feel you head snap back, collide with the wall and snap forward.  Your nose explodes with blood and you can taste it on your tongue as you groan.

~

Outside of the simulation your head knocks backwards violently and Gabe feels nauseous.  It’s like a train wreck. He can’t look away. His hands are balled up into fists at his sides, his knuckles have long since gone white and he’s breathing heavily through the cloud of panic expanding in his chest.  Something’s wrong. Something feels wrong. Why isn’t the simulation pulling you out? How far was this going to go? How deep was this simulation’s test? A normal exam fails someone when they…

Oh shit.  At this point the simulation will only consider a failure if you’re either incapacitated, killed or if you say the safeword that had been told to you before the exam started.  Gabe knows you. You want this too badly and you’re too stubborn to say the safeword. He watches a small trail of blood seep out from the corner of your mouth.

“Fuck.”  Gabe whispers, sounding broken.

~

“Wots it gonna be babygirl?  Are ya gonna tell me wot I wanna ‘ere now?”

A shaky laugh leaves your burning throat.  Do you tell him? Hell no. You’d take the answers with you to your grave before telling this skeezy bastard anything.  Are you going to tell him that straight out? Again, Hell no. 

You’re growing angry, angry with yourself and angry at the man tormenting you.  Angry at your inability to act. Frustrated by the fact that you’d trained your ass off  with the most powerful man you knew, Gabe, Commander of freakin’ Blackwatch and were still somehow managing to get your ass kicked by this freak.  So what were you going to do about all this irritation? Well, a part of you had already decided. Another part of you knew it was a risk, but at the time you hadn’t been thinking about this situation as a simulation, but as something you were living through.  Experiencing. You acted before you could rationalize. You forced your body to tremble and you offer the man a weak smile.

“I’ll -”  You started as you lifted your head and let your head lolled to the side.  Blood leaked out of your nose and pain radiated around the broken bone. The man leaned forward, an eager smile twisting his mouth.  “...something you’ll… want to know.” 

Your voice is a hushed whisper and you force yourself to sound defeated.  You act as if the pain is enough to make you break. You suppress the smile that threatens to give you away by sheer will alone.

“Well?”  The man’s impatience had him prompting you.  “Let me ‘ere it then.”

“You…”  He leans forward. You take in a shuddering breath.  “..hit…” Closer, closer, closer! You mentally urge the man to move forward.  Just a little bit more. You clear your throat and finally, finally he leans just right.  Your lowered eyes jerk up immediately and the smile you’d been forcing back spreads over your face.  Sickly sweet and full of anger. “You hit like a bitch!” You yell as you pull your head back and throw it forward into the man’s in front of you.  He howls in pain and sudden he’s off of you, stumbling back as he holds his hand over his nose. While he jumps in place you reach over and jerk the knife out of your hand. 

You scream loudly as your slippery hand slides off the handle.  You can’t get a good enough grip on it nor do you have the strength to pull it out with your arm already injured.  Your struggles are in vain and you know it, but you can’t give up on yourself. There’s still a way out. You just have to find it.

Your eyes search frantically around the immediate area.  You look at your dress, you look at your shoes. Nothing.  Nothing’s going to help you. Your eyes twitch over to where your hand is pinned to the wall.  Your way out hits you like an epiphany and you have little time to debate or hesitate. You can hear the man’s complaints dying down, he’ll be back if you hesitate.

You grit your teeth and with a swift downwards jerk the blade slices clean through your hand, separating your index and middle finger apart.  The scream that leaves you shreds through your throat and echoes loudly in your ears. You’re crying openly and in so much pain you can’t hardly function, but your body acts on autopilot.  You charge the second attacker and leap on his back, you switch from the non-lethal tactics to the lethal tactics you’ve practice only in theory. You lock your legs around his ribs and slam your elbow down on the top of his head.

He drops to his knees and to prevent yourself from face planting the concrete your hands flew forward to take the brunt of your fall.  Your hand erupts with agonizing pain and the scream you let loose is blood chilling and inhuman. A ragged sob follows directly behind it and you force yourself to move before it can cave in and make you freeze up.

You jerk upright, breathing laboriously and choking on the saliva and blood catching in your throat as you suck in breath after desperate, burning breath.  Your elbow drives into the man’s cheek. You missed your intended target and you pull back quickly. Another elbow strike crashes on his forehead and he shouts his pain.  Again. You command yourself. 

Carefully.  Once more. You lift your arm up and with everything you have left you bring it crashing down on the man’s temple.  A crunch greets your ears and the man you’re straddling becomes still. Deathly still. Lifeless. You sob your victory and wrench your eyes shut.  You feel sick to your stomach and riddled with so much pain you can’t think past the waves of nausea you force back.

Then, you hear a chime.  A sobering chime that erases the blinding pain instantly. The bindings around your wrists come free and your eyes snap open.  You’re suddenly reminded that it was all a simulation and you look down at yourself. You’re not in a black dress. Your hand hasn’t been shredded in half.  Your shoulder hasn’t been stabbed. The gash doesn’t exist vertically down your torso.

“Holy smokes.”  You breathe out. The woman you recognize to be the proctor of your exam comes into view, you’re panting heavily and you feel the residue of tears streaking your flushed cheeks.  It takes you another minute before you orientate yourself with your surroundings. Right. You’re in the simulation room. You take in the grey walls and the EKG monitor against the far wall set up beside a computer monitor and a recently abandoned chair that spins slightly to thud against the desk.  The sound of shuffling draws your attention to your right and you watch as Gabe steps into the room through the doorway.

He looks worried at you and you offer him a thumbs up before you reach for the hem of your shirt and pull it up to wipe the sweat from your face.  It falls back into place after you’re finished and you lean forward in the chair as the proctor peels the electrodes and various sensory nodes from your body.

“You did well,”  The proctor comments as she peels the electrodes from your temples.  “We’ll go over your score after I’ve checked you over. Drink this.” 

A bottle of water comes into view and you accept it, but your hands are shaking too badly to unscrew the cap.  The water is gently taken from your hands, you look over to find Gabe unscrewing the cap and holding it out for you to take again.  “Thank you.” You say and he shakes his head, remaining quiet and you wonder just how much of your exam he’d been able to see. Apparently it had been enough to put a furrow between his dark eyebrows.  

You polish off the water greedily and wipe your mouth with the back of your hand as the proctor approaches the chair you’re in again.  This time a holopad in hand that has her full attention as she begins to read from it. “You showed very good results Reider, I’m surprised this is your fourth time taking the exam.  You scored very high on most everything, I suggest you spent a little more time brushing up on your close quarters combative skills and make sure in the field you keep yourself aware.  The surprise attack from the second attacker could have been fatal, this time it was an exam - next time you won’t be so lucky.” She tells you and you nod thoughtfully. She’s right and there’s no chance you’re going to deny it.  The proctor scrolls up the screen more and frowns before tapping the holopad screen twice and putting the device in standby. The proctor tucks it under her arm and folds her hands in front of her waist.

“I’d also like to commend you on your ability to remain calm under stress and pressure.  Though it was very stupid of you to taunt your attacker.” Ah. Yeah, you’d done that hadn’t you?  

“ _ Very _ stupid.”  Gabe pitches in and you can feel the heat in his tone.  You sigh and nod once more.

“That’s all I have to say to you.  Congratulations on passing,  _ Agent _ Reider.”  The proctor extends her hand and you shake it.  Her voice rings in your head, repeating a single word over and over.  Agent. Agent Reider. A wide smile spreads slowly across your face, so wide it hurts your cheeks.  Everything you’ve done, your training, your studying, running drills with Jesse then later with Gabe.  The years you’ve spent dedicated to achieving this very moment. All of your struggles and all of the obstacles that popped up along the way.  You remembered them all and as reality sank in you pushed up shakily from the chair.

You were drowning in the happiness filling your heart.  You needed to get it out somehow and you knew just how to do that.  You looked at Gabe and even though he still looked peeved and irritated you didn’t care.  You’d take the verbal ass chewing from him later and with a big smile, but for now. You stepped up to him and threw your hands forward to grab fistfuls of his shirt.  With one great tug you pulled him down to press your lips against his. He kisses you back, slow and sweet, just as the happiness starts to spill over.

You smile against his lips and the first of many laughs spills out of your mouth as he presses his forehead against yours.  The crease is gone from his brows when you open your eyes again. You can see the happiness in his eyes and you steal another chaste kiss from him.

“Congratulations  cariña.”  He whispers so only you can hear.  A warm smile then makes its way onto his face and he locks his arms around you to drag you into a breath-stealing hug that you eagerly soak up.  His lips press to your cheek then against the shell of your ear. 

“Are you okay?”  He asks.

“I am one hundred percent okay.  My throat hurts a little but otherwise, nothing.”

“Good.”  He whispers and breathes out as if a huge burden has been lifted from him.  He doesn’t tell you that he never wants to hear you scream like that every again, because if he knew anything about being an Agent of Overwatch or Blackwatch it’s that no one gets to have any say against the unknown.  That doesn’t mean he isn’t going to start paying closer attention to the missions he sends his men out on. He’s also definitely going to pay extra attention to the assignments you’re given. You mean too much to him to not at least do that.

“Gabe?”  You whisper to him and pat his arms.  “I really like these kind of hugs, but it’s hard to breathe.”

His hold loosens immediately and you smile up at him as your feet meet the ground again. 

“Let’s go tell the others.” He says as he drags you by the wrist out of the room.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning this chapter is primarily NSFW. Up to the point before transitioning it's SFW. I'm so happy with all the support I've had posting Choice, it's been a real treat. I won't make promises on dates for when the next part of the series will come out, but just know they are in the making. Let me know your thoughts. Thanks so much everyone!

_ *Two Weeks Later* _

You sit tucked against Gabe’s side in the lounge that’s bustling with activity.  The agents of Overwatch and Blackwatch have all come together in celebration of your first completed mission out in the field.  Soft music plays through the speakers but it’s barely audible over the hum of conversation and laughter. It was a fantastic surprise to come back to and you haven’t stopped smiling since Gabe uncovered your eyes and you were nearly startled to death by the loud, collective yell of  _ surprise _ .  

That had been over five hours ago and you were working on your second slice of cake, enthusing over the buttermilk icing that was sugary sweet and better than everything you’d eaten all week during your recon mission in Northern frozen wastelands of Russia.  Though the sweetness was helping your taste buds recover from the potent, burning shot of liquor Jack had offered to you an hour ago. You gasp over dramatically as you watch Gabe steal the bite of cake off your plate that you had been saving for last and pop it into his mouth. Your frown of betrayal is met with Gabe’s smug smile as you glare sideways at him.

“That was going to be the best bite Gabe.”  You complain and watch as his closed mouth smile gets bigger.  He leaned over and bumped his shoulder against yours then he moans loudly with pleasure as he makes a show of his chewing, then he swallows and you watch his adam's apple bob.  Taking the bite of cake down with the motion.

“Mm, you were right cariña,”  He pauses to sip from his glass of scotch.  Which makes you turn to fix a glare on him. How dare he wash down the best bite,  _ your bite _ , with that tart amber liquid.  He laughs under his breath. “It was really good too.”

“You are,”  You shake your accusing finger at him, but you can’t muster any real heat into your tone.  His growing smile shows you that he knows you can’t be mad about the stolen bite. You stick your tongue out at him and huff noisily.  “Shutup.”

“Make me.”  He challenges and a smirk of your own grows on your face as you get a better grip on the paper plate in your hand then smash the leftover icing against his cheek.  You burst out into loud, unfettered laughter as the small plate sticks to his cheek after you pull your hand away. The look of complete shock on Gabe’s face makes you laugh harder.  He plucks the plate off his cheek then snags you by your belt and jerks you flush against him.

“I’ll get you back cariña.”  He promises. Your breath catches in your throat, not from his promise, but from the heat that suddenly warms your stomach. You don’t imagine it was Gabe’s intention for his fingers to slip into your underwear too when he snagged your waistband, but that’s definitely what he’s done and both of you become very aware, very quickly.  His eyes darken with something akin to lust as he slowly, tauntingly withdraws his hand and slips his palm to rest on your hip. 

Before either of you can mention leaving to one another you’re interrupted by Jesse calling out to you.  You look over to find the brunet pulling a reluctant looking man you find vaguely familiar over towards where you stood with Gabe.  You’ve seen him around the compound, but not often and never wearing an overwatch uniform of any sorts.   
Then you remember, a few weeks ago there had been a big commotion.  Someone had breached the system, taking control of the live feeds around the compound.  Laughing while making jabs at Winston about Athena’s software. It was this man who’d done it.

“Cockblock.”  You swear you hear Gabe whisper under his breath, but when you look over to him he’s finishing the last of his scotch.  You snort and bump your hip against his, earning a sheepish though completely unapologetic smirk from him.

Finally Jesse stops in front of you and pulls the handsome man in front of him.  His hands clamping down on the other man’s shoulders. “Hey, I wanted you to meet someone. Lachlan, he’s uh… Well Gabe and Jack got history with him.  He’s around for a bit, waiting on some some heat to die down outside.”

It’s winter.  You think to yourself.

You take in the younger man as he extends a gloved hand towards you immediately.  He’s very well dressed and from his outward appearance enjoys looking his best. He wears black slacks, shiny shoes and a white button up and a black tie.  His black hair is slicked back and his pale green eyes hold depth to them, beyond the irritation you see in them that you assume is directed at the pushy cowboy behind him.  

“It’s nice to meet you.”  You say and clasp his hand firmly.  You had imagined soft hands, but the hand you’re met with is everything but.  Lachlan’s hold is firm and his hands are  _ hard? _  The you realize, it’s bionic and it’s no wonder Jesse snagged him from the party to introduce him to you.  Your opinion of the stoic man changes on the spot and you understand the depth in his eyes. You smile at him and look away before you make him uncomfortable.

He’s lived through something to mould him into the reserved man in front of you.  You sense a silent strength in the way he carries himself, he’s guarded himself and he won’t be an easy nut to crack open.  You just hope Jesse hasn’t pried too much too soon. Instantly you decide you like Lachlan and as the man pulls his gloved hand away you tighten your grasp and clasp your second hand overtop of it.  “Don’t feel obligated to answer every question you’re given Lachlan, Jesse can be nosy.”

Lachlan’s lip twitches and he shoots a glare over his shoulder to where Jesse stands and whistles as he looked everywhere but at his handler.  

“I’ll keep that in mind.”  He states and you’re greeted by his deep, clear voice.  Then he turns back to you and you catch a slight lift of the corner of his mouth when he meets your eyes.  “It’s a bit late but congratulations on your new position Agent Reider.”

You beam him a wide smile.  “Thank you.”

You glance over to where Jesse stands and you feel a tug on your heart.  You caught the misty eyed look he was giving you and you felt the prickles of tears build in your own pair.  “Jesse stop, if you cry I’ll cry.”

“I’m not cryin’ woman.”  The thickness in his voice said otherwise and you laughed wetly as you tugged off your glasses and wiped your eyes.  You then turned back to Lachlan and catch Commander Morrison looking in the direction of the group. His eyes are set entirely on Lachlan, a hint of worry is etched into the blond’s face.  Jack worries too much, but it seems like maybe Lachlan’s past has something to do with it. You’ll have to ask sometime. You make note of it.

“I think Jack’s looking for you, though you’re hard to miss.”  You say, causing Lachlan to look over his shoulder. For a second the tension drained in Lachlan’s shoulders when he met Jack’s eyes.  Lachlan nods to him and you see the gears of planning and adjusting start grinding in his head as he excuses himself. You place your glasses back onto your face and catch Jesse staring after the young man.  There’s something you’re not in the loop about with Lachlan, but when you look back to follow the younger man’s path you find him tucked in the corner of the room talking animatedly with Jack. You reach out and cuff the Jesse on the back of his head and he scowls first at Gabe then immediately drops his gaze to you. 

Lachlan probably doesn’t want so many people worrying about him.  It was probably enough just with Jack alone.

“Not ya too Reider, my head can only take so much from Jefe.”  Jesse complains and you snort.

“Your head is thick enough Jesse.”  You tease then turn serious. “Be steady Jesse, you don’t have to worry about Lachlan - Jack’s got it covered, so trust him.”

From the look on the cowboy’s face you know you’ve got him thinking about your words and then he shrugs, carding his fingers through his hair he nods.  Jesse then smiles at you after putting his thoughts to the back of his mind. 

“Reider, come have a shot with me.”  He doesn’t wait for you to answer and tugs you away from Gabe’s hold.  Behind you Gabe makes a noise of complaint but he lets you go with Jesse.

“You’re taunting a starved lion with its dinner Jesse.”  You whisper as Jesse pulls you to the open bar and snags a bottle from the shelf and two shot glasses.  He pours an amber liquid into each of the glasses and then slides one in your direction.

“I know I am and he knows it too.  Which makes it more fun.” Jesse replies and together you knock your shots together and throw them back.  Liquid fire streams down your throat and you swallow quickly before you can start coughing. Your brows pinch together as you suck in a deep breath.

“What the hell is that?  Ethanol?” You ask as you cough into your hand.

Jesse laughs loudly as he refills your shot glass.  “Somethin’ not far off them lines. To your promotion.”  

You throw it back and feel your skin start to tingle and flush red.  In seconds the warmth of the alcohol in your stomach has expanded to warm your entire body.  Jesse refills it once more and you gape at him. “Jesse-”

“One more.  Jefe’s losing part of that control, he’s not gonna let me getcha drunk.  He has plans.” Jesse says as he wiggles his eyebrows at you. His message is clear that he knows what you’d be up to with Gabe later.  You roll your eyes at him and pick up the shot glass. 

“You know he’s going to get you back right?  Gabe doesn’t get even, he gets ahead.”

“Boy howdy, don’t I know it.”  Jesse laughed. “Cheers.”

“Cheers.”  You say and try to hide your grimace as you lift the shot to your lips and throw it back. After you swallow the burning liquid your whole body shudders and you giggle as your eyes meet Jesse’s.  As you place your glass back down Jesse reaches for the bottle once more and you hear Gabe’s heavy footsteps come up behind you. An arm snakes around your waist and hauls you back against his firm chest.

“I won’t go easy on you tomorrow during training even if you’re hungover McCree.”  Gabe states flatly and his fingers curl against your stomach sending warmth skittering across your skin.  You hum contently as you turn into Gabe’s chest and wrap your arm around his waist in return.

“Awe Jefe, it’s a celebration.  What kind of party throwers would we be if the guest of honor isn’t stumbling back to her quarters by the end of the night?”  

“Responsible ones.”  Gabe answered immediately.  “She has a busy day tomorrow too, so…”

“Why don’t we cut out early then?  It’s nearing midnight, I could go for a good night’s sleep.”  You interrupt and slide your hand into Gabe’s, tugging him towards the exit.  “Goodnight Jesse.”

“G’night darlin’.” He yells after you.  As you lead Gabe out of the lounge he pulls ahead, his footsteps picking up pace.

-

Gabe ushers you into his quarters eagerly, as soon as the lights pop on automatically Gabe reaches over to turn them to the lowest setting as he crowds you against the wall.  He leans down and his lips latch onto your neck, leaving a train of gentle bites and chaste kisses along your pulse. Your breath catches in your throat and you roll your head to the side to expose more of your neck to him.  He hums appreciatively and his hands grip your hips firmly. You reach out and grab his shirt, pulling it out from where Gabe tucked it into the waistband of his fatigues. 

He kisses a path up to your jaw and when his teeth graze against your earlobe you arch forward.  Hot breath fans across your neck and a groan rumbles in Gabe’s throat. “Mm cariña.”

“Hmm?”  You hum in response and his hands tighten on your hips.

“Tell me yes cariña.”  He whispered against your ear and his intent is clear when he presses his pelvis against yours.  You feel the beginning of his arousal through his pants and a low whine spills out of your lips as you grind against him languidly as you draw out the electric pleasure that shivers up your spine.  Gabe groans against your ear and you grin.

“I need a shower.”  You rasp.

He grunts.  “You’ll just get dirty immediately after.”

“Mmn, but I smell.”

“Cariña you smell like sunshine, heat and your perfume is…” Gabe grinds himself against you and you gasp quietly.  “Intoxicating.”

Oh God, you could listen to him forever if he kept up that tone.  He pressed a kiss on your temple and his thumbs began rubbing slow circles into your hip bones.  Your hands slid up the panes of his abs, following the chiseled grooves up to his pecs before you dragged your blunt nails straight down until you met his waistband.  His stomach jumped under your touch and he groaned long and low right against your ear.

You turned your head and pressed your lips against his neck.  “Yes.” You felt his body tense up as he heard you utter the word and suddenly your feet were off the ground in an impressive display of strength he braced you against the wall.  Your groins pressed directly against one another and he nipped at your neck before he claimed your mouth in a hot, passionate kiss. Gabe rocked against your body and your lips parted for him to slip his tongue into your mouth.

Large hands knead your ass and your breath hitches again.  You meet his intensity equally and wrap your legs around his waist, your hand wedges between your bodies and your fingers jerk at his belt.  It comes undone and you repeat the same process with your own as he slows the kiss and you catch his bottom lip between your teeth.

He groans and returns the favor.  Then he’s lifting you and pulling you away from the wall.  Your kiss ends as he breaks away to pay attention to his footsteps.  You kiss his neck and start pulling his shirt up just as he lays you back on his mattress.  His bed is as neatly made as ever and you squirm further up the mattress when he stands up to tear the shirt off himself.

“Have I ever told you how much I appreciate looking at your body?”  You say to him and he makes a show of slowly flexing his arms and then his abs.  You soak it all up, admiring the scarred mocha skin as it tightens and his muscles shift.  He kneels on the edge of the mattress and it dips under his additional weight. 

You spread your bent knees to allow him to climb over you and settle between them.  His eyes are heated as he looks down at you and you bite your lower lip in anticipation as he lowers himself on top of you.  You steal a kiss from his lips and lay back as his hands tug up your shirt. His knuckles drag over your stomach, then his fingers fan out with his thumbs hooking on the hem of your shirt and dragging up the material as he moves up.

You raise your arms as he reaches your breasts.  Your shirt is removed soon after and you lay panting under him in your lacy bra.  You hear the clank of your belt buckles hitting one another and you smile up at him.

“I like this.”  Gabe comments as his fingers ghost across your bra.  “But I’m sorry cariña, I don’t like it enough to keep it on you tonight, it’s coming off.”

You smirk.  “I’d hope you like it, I bought it with you in mind.”  An appreciative noise growls from Gabe’s throat and then he jerks the cup of your bra down to expose you right breast.  Your nipple tightened immediately to the cold air. His tongue is hot against your peaked nipple as he grazes over it with the point of his tongue.

You moan throatily as you arch up.  His mouth is a searing cavern as he closes it around your breast, sucking and licking and scraping his teeth over your sensitive peak.  Reflexively your hips rock up and your groin rubs against his wantingly. It isn’t long before he repeats the action with your other nipple, cupping your breasts in his large hands and alternating his kneading strokes as he grinds his erection against your dampening crux.

“Ahn…” You sigh. “Gabe.”

He bites your nipple gently and you gasp in a deep breath. Gabe releases your nipple and swipes his tongue over the top of it before kissing up your sternum, over the small and recent paintball made scar there, up to your neck and then your chin.  He smiles down at you as he presses kisses to the corner of your mouth.

As he does your hand glides down his stomach then into his waistband.  You wrap your hand around his cock and it jumps in your hold, you stroke it slowly from tip to base earning a deep rumbling moan from Gabe.  You’re hot from more than the alcohol in your system now and you feel like you’re going to burst into flames at any point. Your desire for the man above you is nearly overwhelming as you stroke him again and again.

His forehead presses against your shoulder and he thrusts shallowly into your hand, enjoying himself with the leisure pace you’ve set.  You glance over to find him already staring at you, his lips parted into a wolfish grin. You smile back at him and watch him closely as you swipe your thumb over the tip of his cock.  His hips buck forward and a flash of white appears just as his teeth lock down on his bottom lip, a loud and drawn out moan goes muffled. You reach up to cup his jaw and press a kiss on his shoulder moving you way up to his jawline where you detour to his ear.

“Gabe,”  You whisper and he hums at you.  “I like foreplay with you a lot, but I’m not feeling very patient tonight.”

“Oh?”  He questions and you slip your hand out from his pants.  You drop your other down to work on the button and zipper of his pants.  He laughs at your eagerness and dropped his hand down to work on your pants also.  He pauses when the clasp of your pants comes undone and you bring your hands up and around to slide along his back.  He kisses you and pulls back making you chase his lips for a deep kiss that’s interrupted and soothed by a chaste kiss to follow up.  “I want to hear it Reider. Do you want to have sex?”

“With you?  Yeah, I’m working on that right now.”  You respond and though you say it with a smile, your tone is completely serious.  “Do you?”

“Right now?”  He asks and you nod, holding his gaze.  His lip twitches. “I’m working on it.”

Your laugh is cut off by a moan as he slides his hand inside your pants, past your matching lace underwear and then slips two fingers between your folds.  You think you hear him curse under his breath, but you weren’t certain as his hand retreated almost immediately and he shuffled down the bed.

You watched him go to his bathroom and when he came out he held a foil condom packet in his hand.  Then you leaned up and started unlacing your boots and tossing them to the floor as he did the same.  Silently you competed with him as you ripped off your sock, then the other and with some finessing you managed to wiggle out of your pants and shove them over the side of the bed.

As your hands went to your bra clasp Gabe crawled onto the mattress beside you, as naked as the day he was born and you took in the sight beside you.  Tone calves reached up to meet thick muscular thighs that bore an familiar amount of scars. The same scars you’d seen countless times and traced over with the tips of your fingers.  A knife wound, ten stitches. A bullet graze, four stitches. Bicycle accident, a bandaid and rubbing alcohol. You remembered the stories he’d told you for the few you’d asked about and you intended to find out the rest and remember those too.

“You’re beautiful when you look like that.”  He tells you and you feel heat rise to your cheeks that doesn’t have anything to do with the alcohol you’ve had or the pleasure you’d received so far.  You turn your face away and finally unclasp your bra. Gabe reaches over to hook a finger between the cups of it and then pulls it away almost teasingly slow.  “You compliment me, admire my body and allow me to do the same with yours without batting an eyelash on your pretty face. Yet, - hah, there you go again - when I compliment you, you blush and get shy.”

You won’t deny it.  You bring your hands up to rub your cheeks with the back of your knuckles.  “I like when you compliment me.” You admit and reach up to take off your glasses, Gabe takes them for you and sets them on the bedside table.  You know you’ll be close enough to him to see everything you want anyway, so it’s no loss to have them safety removed. “I… really just like hearing  _ you _ say it.  Whether I’m dressed up and in a silly competition or running around covered in bruises and paint from a paintball match or… now when I’m just here.”

“Naked with me. I like that a lot too.”  He comments with an appreciative hum then reaches out to pull you onto him.  Your bodies move to a more comfortable position and you end up straddling Gabe.  His arms come up to rest around your waist and you brace your forearms on either side of his head.  He leans his head up and kisses your lips. 

“Cariña, mi amor,”  He whispers as he strokes a hand up your spine.  “I like  _ you _ not the clothes you wear. I like when you laugh and when you tease and when you’re playful and when you’re annoyed.  I like that you handle Jesse carefully with one hand and firmly with the other. You took care of him for three years while still aiming for your goal.”

He cut himself off and thumped his head back on the bed.  “I can’t believe I’m talking about that cowboy when I have you naked and alone.”

You laugh then and he watches your face light up with joy.  When you calm you lower yourself and kiss him deeply, seeking entrance this time into his mouth.  Your tongues tangle and his hand tighten their grip on your heated skin. When you separate it’s for a deep breath and then he sits up, taking you with him and you slide against his length.  You both groan at the contact and you realize he’s already rolled the condom onto his cock. You smile and grind against him, he meets you with a shallow thrust and then the tip catches between your folds.

You’re more than ready to take him, slick and with the addition of the condoms lube he slowly guides you down his length.  “Ah.” You whisper as you reach up to scrape your blunt nails across his back as you steady yourself with your other hand braced on his muscled shoulder.

“That’s it cariña.”  He rasps and with another thrust he’s seated inside you.  You feel so right in his arms and he feels like he’s coming home wrapped in yours.  Your thighs spread more and he rocks up into you, reaching deep and filling you more.  Your breath hitches and catches in your throat, moans get muffled against his shoulder and neck.  

He groans thickly and you shiver from the sound.  You love that he’s as vocal as you are. Panting hot breaths against your shoulder that he kisses occasionally between thrusts.  You love that he’s sweet and gentle, but demanding and needy.

His fingers dig into the soft flesh of your ass and slide across your back up to the back of your neck where he grabs hold and anchors you in his hold.  The slow rhythm he’d started out with was slowly increasing, but his tenderness and care never change. You share kisses and moan against his lips when he delivers a particularly strong thrust that makes your toes curl and your back arch.  

He holds you firm during those moments and kisses the part of your throat that you expose, neither of you care about leaving behind marks, so you leave many and he sucks red patches into your skin.  When he slows again his hand slips around your back to squeeze between your bodies and you keen loudly as his thumb swipes across your clit slowly at first then faster as he speeds up his thrusts.

“G-Gabe.”  You hiccup around his name and the muscles in your thighs tighten with the increase of pleasure fueled tremors.  Your orgasm coils like a viper low in your belly and he bites the skin on your collarbone. His groans fill the room along with your moans and the sound of skin meeting skin.

“Reider.”  He responds in a thick rasp.  His breath catches in his throat and the thumb on your clit swipes faster.  His thrusts deepen and your voice catches on your sighed breaths. “Cariña, mi amor.  Ah, baby. Yes.” He grunts and then you feel yourself tighten up impossibly. You reach your climax before him and an intelligible shout spills from his lips as he forces you down on his shaft and locks you in place with his strong arm.  

Your thighs tighten on his waist and you squirm as you ride out your orgasm, drawing moans and groans from both of you until he collapses backwards onto the bed.  You lay on him, panting and feeling entirely sated. His chest rises and falls with deep breaths as his hips jerk shallowly until he goes limp.

“C’mere.”  He demands as he tilts your head up.  Gabe devours your mouth once again, nipping your kiss swollen lips alternately as he rolls you both onto your sides and slides his softening cock from your body.  When he pulls away you both smile at one another and everything warm and soft melts into the pair of dark eyes looking at you.

“You make me smile and laugh. You make my days feel fuller and seem brighter. You make me happy Gabe.”  You say to him when your breathing evens out. He smiles openly at you, the widest you’ve seen yet and it’s like he’s receiving exactly what he’s asked for for christmas.  He gathers you up in his arms and you bring your thigh up over his legs. Neither of you care about the sweat cooling on your bodies, for the moment you both want to stay right where you are.  In each others arms, sated and relaxed and completely happy.

As you lay there, in a state between dozing and awake you realize you have all you could ever hope for.  Your heart is full and so is his.

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback will always be encouraged. Tell me your thoughts, criticize me constructively. I'm always looking to improve. Tell me what you liked, what you didn't. Or just leave kudos if you'd like, I'll eat it all up. Thanks for reading. I'll be updating on Monday's, Wednesday's and Friday's.
> 
> (Though I wonder if I'll be able to hold off on uploading it all. I'm very proud of this work and my own accomplishment of finishing it entirely before even thinking of uploading the first chapter.)
> 
> I'd also like to say that Marukun has been a very big help with motivating me to complete Choice. She's helped me when I was stuck, she's given me ideas and she's let me spitball ideas off of her until something sticks. So Marukun thank you immensely, here's my way of saying I appreciate you and all you do for me as an pre-screen editor/ smut-partner-in-crime.


End file.
